National Assembly Majority leader Kimani Ichung’wah has explained why only the president is allowed to use military choppers, a directive from Defence CS, that blocked other state officials like the Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Prime CS Musalia Mudavadi from accessing the aircrafts in the delivery of their mandate.
During a parliament session on Wednesday evening, Ichung’wah said that the directive from Defence CS Aden Duale is aimed at cutting operational costs for the Kenya Defence Forces.
“The Defense Cabinet Secretary (Aden Duale) did inform me that for the last year, the aircraft used by the Deputy President, Prime Cabinet Secretary, and other senior government officials occasioned an expenditure of Sh500 million to KDF.
“Kenya Defence Forces has now made a policy decision that should any official want to use the military aircraft, it must be on request,” he revealed.
This comes on the wake of challenges experienced by Gachagua, who has been forced to board commercial and private planes.
Ichung’wah noted that the recent development is not an unusual occurrence for senior government officials.
“When William Ruto was the deputy president, he not only used Kenya Airways but also Jambo Jet, and other commercial flights in the country,” the Kikuyu MP said.
He added that on his trip to Mombasa, Gachagua safety was highly considered, as he travelled along with a minimum of 14 security officials.
He also said that he would formally invite Duale to the floor of the house so that he would respond to questions regarding the issue.
