Former Senate Majority Leader Samuel Poghisio has raised concerns over the rollout of the Pay-As-You-Eat (PAYE) system in the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), warning that it could leave soldiers hungry and compromise their operational readiness.
Speaking at a local TV station on Monday, June 30, 2025, Poghisio criticised the policy shift, which now requires soldiers to pay for their meals out of pocket unless a check-off system is implemented on July 1, 2025.
“Unless it’s a check-off system, there are days when you don’t have the cash. This is an experiment never done before,” he said.
He noted that soldiers, like all citizens, have multiple financial responsibilities, and expecting them to always have disposable cash for meals is unrealistic.
According to Poghisio, the danger lies in the new model, where, if a soldier has no money, they simply won’t eat that day.
“If you go hungry three or four times, you start feeling weak, and you cannot work properly, and we need our military to work at full strength,” he said.
Despite the concern, he praised the professionalism of the Kenyan military, saying they continue to perform their duties with discipline and loyalty.
“We still have a very professional army. They try to keep away from politics as much as they can. Except when politicians come and interfere,” he said.
The rollout of the PAYE system immediately replaces the traditional exchequer-funded lunch programme, despite disquiet from a section of servicemen and women of lower ranks, who heavily depend on the subsidy initiative for survival.
Pay-As-You-Eat
A letter from the Kenya Army Headquarters dated June 23, 2025, and signed by Chief of Logistics Brigadier Eric Nzioki Kitusya, titled ‘Implementation of Pay-As-You-Eat (PAYE) Program’, reads:
“The implementation of the subject program is scheduled to commence on 01 July 2025. In this regard, authority is granted to you to demand Ration Scale Four (4) for fourteen (14) days with effect from July 1, 2025, for use as seed capital for the programme. Your demands to reach this headquarters not later than 25th June 2025.”
“Please note that it is envisaged that the proceeds of the seed capital will form a self-sustaining revolving fund to be administered by the Pay-As-You-Eat Management Committees to oversee the operation of the messing facilities,” the letter further reads.
“Further, you are advised to utilise the existing messing infrastructure/facilities/amenities to support the Pay-As-You-Eat programme. Additional requirements will continue to be considered progressively on a case-by-case basis in the 2025/2026 financial year.”
Responding to the new changes set to take effect on Tuesday, the Ministry of Defence stated, “The decision to transition from the exchequer-funded lunch program for service members to the Pay-As-You-Eat system has been necessitated by the need to streamline budgetary allocation, efficiency in use of government resources, facilitating access to a variety of meals that suit individual preferences, and alignment to best military practices both regionally and internationally.”
“The exchequer-funded lunch system has proved non-cost-effective. It does not offer flexibility of time, nor does it provide the convenience of a feeding place, and has been faulted for loss of working hours due to long queues and duplication of ration scales when service members are assigned to different camps,” the ministry added.
