President William Ruto is not backing down on his plan to move every shilling of public money through the eCitizen platform.

Speaking at the Third National Executive Retreat in Kajiado on June 19, the Head of State told officials that “all government payments will be done on eCitizen,” and singled out school heads who still issue physical receipts as the next target for enforcement.

Ruto argued that digital payments are the surest way to stamp out leakages and blamed resistance on administrators who “have things to hide.” He urged parents to insist on paying fees online and warned that institutions blocking the switch would face government action.

The hard line comes barely three months after the High Court declared the Education Ministry’s January 2024 circular – requiring parents to pay fees via eCitizen – unconstitutional. Justice Chacha Mwita faulted the State for skipping public participation and questioned the legality of the KSh 50 convenience fee attached to each transaction.

Education officials have since confirmed they will appeal the ruling. Basic Education PS Julius Bitok says the digital gateway protects parents from rogue levies and lets the public see exactly what schools collect.

Treasury records show eCitizen handled KSh 100.8 billion in the 2023/24 fiscal year, up from KSh 26 billion the year before, averaging 120 000 transactions a day.

Yet auditors have flagged gaps: a May 2025 report by Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu found discrepancies worth KSh 44.8 billion and warned that the system still relies heavily on a private vendor.

For now, Kenyans should brace for a tug-of-war in the courts even as the government races to prove its one-stop pay portal is both transparent and lawful.