The legality of the Huduma Kenya Secretariat has come under scrutiny after an audit revealed that the government service delivery agency has operated without a policy and legislative framework for 12 years, raising concerns that its operations could be challenged in court.
The revelations, contained in an audit of the State Department for Public Service for the 2023/24 financial year by Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu, have put the department on the spot over its failure to secure the agency's legal status.
Public Service Principal Secretary Jane Imbunya acknowledged the gaps when she appeared before the National Assembly's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), where MPs questioned why the government had failed to establish a legal framework for the secretariat, which oversees Huduma Centres across the country.
Principal Secretary for Public Service and Human Capital Development Jane Kere Imbunya appears before the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Butere MP Tindi Mwale, at Bunge Tower in Nairobi on Wednesday, October 14, 2026.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo|Nation Media group
Wajir South MP Mohamed Adow, a member of the committee, said the secretariat had operated without a legal framework for more than 12 years and demanded to know what the department had done to address the problem.
“What have you done to ensure that the legal framework is in place?” asked Mr Adow, a PAC member, adding, “This reeks of fix it as we go along.”
“That if it hasn’t broken, don’t fix it,” said the Wajir South MP, noting, “you can do better than that.”
The revelations have renewed questions about the legal basis of the summit, the payment of allowances to its members and the accountability mechanisms governing the expenditure of public funds.
This is because the PS failed to reveal how much public funds had been spent on the summit for the last 12 years.
Turkana Central colleague Joseph Emathe Namwar noted that “when such queries are raised, your seriousness comes into focus.”
“The absence of a legal framework means that anyone can go to court seeking to stop the operations of the Huduma Centres,” warned Mr Namwar.
According to Ms Gathungu, the Gazette Notice No. 2177 of April 4, 2014 established the Huduma Kenya Service delivery programme under the oversight of the Service Delivery Summit (SDS), chaired by the President and which is required to meet twice a year.
A technical committee chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Devolution or CS for Interior, to keep minutes of the summit, was formed, drawing membership from nine Principal Secretaries and the Solicitor-General.
“However, since the inception in the year 2014, Huduma Kenya Secretariat has no policy and legislative framework for its existence as required by the gazette notice No. 2177,” says Ms Gathungu, adding; “the legality of the Huduma Kenya Secretariat operations could not be confirmed.”
The function of the technical committee includes developing policy and legislation for the Huduma Kenya Secretariat for approval by the SDS.
The audit reveals that the minutes of the meetings of the SDS, “which is meant to meet twice a year and the technical committee were not provided for audit review."
According to PS Imbunya, the last time the SDS met was in 2014, noting that it was “humanly impossible for us to produce minutes as the summit is not under the State Department for Public Service.”
Principal Secretary for Public Service and Human Capital Development Jane Kere Imbunya appears before the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Butere MP Tindi Mwale, at Bunge Tower in Nairobi on Wednesday, October 14, 2026.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo|Nation Media group
“We are making every effort to emancipate the Huduma Centres and their functionality across the country. We confirm that there is a team put in place this year and they have given their views that have been incorporated into the document,” says Prof Imbunya.
The PS further noted that it is just a matter of time before the document, which the PS revealed that it is on the desk of Public Service CS Geoffrey Ruku, is presented in the cabinet for approval.
At some point, PAC chairperson Tindi Mwale tried to moderate PS Imbunya’s response on the grounds that “you are disclosing serious information…”
The PS, however, stood her ground, saying, “please let me finish.” “I swore by the Bible,” said the PS as Mr Mwale slumped back in the chair.
