• Moses Kuria expressed regret for sponsoring Eric Omondi for a trip to USA seven years ago
• Eric vowed to refund the money

Comedian Eric Omondi has said he will refund Trade CS Moses Kuria the money that Kuria spent on sponsoring his trip to the United States seven years ago.

Omondi made the announcement in a TikTok video. He said that he wanted to avoid embarrassing Kuria in front of his children in the future. He also said that he wanted to have a counterargument if Kuria ever claimed in the future that he had helped Omondi.

Kuria had expressed regret for sponsoring Omondi’s trip in June, saying that he had hoped that the trip would broaden Omondi’s perspective and expose him to the world. However, Kuria was disappointed that Omondi had opposed the proposals in the Finance Bill 2023.

Omondi responded to Kuria’s remarks by dismissing the notion that his trip to America should have changed his stance on taxation. He expressed his belief that the government should prioritize addressing the high cost of living and food insecurity, rather than focusing solely on housing.

The back-and-forth between Omondi and Kuria has sparked a debate about the role of government in addressing the challenges facing Kenyans.

Omondi said that he would refund Kuria the money in installments. Kuria has not yet responded to Omondi’s announcement.

The trade CS has recently been trending for mostly wrong reasons. He recently defied a court order barring him from uttering defamatory words against the media.

Just a few days after the order was issued, the CS, who was addressing residents of Kimorori area in Maragua constituency used derogatory words in reference to the media.

He accused the sector of supporting Azimio La Umoja leader Raila Odinga.

The court had issued the order following a petition filed by lawyer Charles Mugane seeking to have him barred from threatening the media after he attacked Nation Media Group for publishing an expose’ on edible oils.

In his speech, Kuria said that he had no issues with journalists but asked them to “get saved and stop peddling lies.” He said the media fraternity should respect the current leadership and stop being used by former President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Kuria also said that the media should stop insulting him, as he does not speak out for his own sake but for the sake of the people. He said that when the media insults him, they are insulting the people too.

Kuria’s defiance of the court order has been condemned by journalists and media freedom advocates. They have argued that Kuria’s attacks on the media are an attempt to intimidate and silence journalists who are critical of him.