MPs grill Government Advertising Agency over Sh9 million weekly MyGov deal
Principal Secretary Stephen Isaboke, while appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Information, Communication and Innovation, told MPs that the deal was far cheaper than the previous contract.
Members of Parliament have questioned the spending of millions of shillings by the Government Advertising Agency (GAA) in a contract that places the MyGov publication in one local newspaper at a cost of Sh9 million weekly.
Broadcasting and Telecommunications Principal Secretary Stephen Isaboke, while appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Information, Communication and Innovation, told MPs that the deal was far cheaper than the previous contract.
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He explained that under the old arrangement, the government spent Sh24.5 million every week to advertise in four newspapers, compared to the current Sh9 million weekly bill.
Isaboke said the shift had cut government expenditure by 63.26 per cent, saving Sh15.5 million weekly.
“Overall, the government was spending Sh1.19 billion versus Sh432 million currently, resulting in a saving of Sh758 million. Therefore, value for money is clearly demonstrated,” he said.
However, MPs cast doubt on the justification, questioning how paying Sh9 million to one outlet could be considered cheaper than paying Sh6.1 million each to four newspapers previously, which also had a wider reach.
“You are saving while spending that amount on one newspaper only. Initially, four newspapers would carry MyGov, and I believe back then the circulation was way higher as compared to now, so you save at the expense of what?” Mbooni MP Erastus Kivasu posed.
The legislators further demanded that GAA adopt a proper monitoring and evaluation system to justify value for money in the advertising deal.
Committee chair John Kiarie challenged the agency to move to a digital tracking model, terming the current reliance on analogue methods inadequate.
“How do we ensure there is a more digitised measure to track our circulation? You have said you use the post office to record, and I think it is now time to step up and go digital,” Kiarie said.
“It is also not right to rely on the newspaper, which you are their client, to tell you how many issues they circulate every Tuesday; they could say a hundred copies, yet they are fewer or vice versa.”
Isaboke disclosed that GAA currently depends on a delivery list signed and stamped by the Postal Corporation of Kenya and a private firm to verify compliance. But MPs insisted this approach was prone to inaccuracies and could not provide clear accountability.
The committee urged GAA to embrace better strategies and modern systems that would establish the agency as a more reliable platform for communicating government programmes and achievements.
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