Nairobi — SEVEN Cabinet ministers may have their cars seized following an order by Head of the Civil Service Francis Muthaura.

Environment minister John Michuki and his Immigration colleague Otieno Kajwang' are among the seven who have failed hand in their large vehicles and replace them with the VW Passats bought by Treasury.

Last week, Muthaura met with all permanent secretaries and directed them to seize official cars assigned to their ministers and assistants which were not compliant with the directive limiting ministers to one official car with an engine capacity of not more than 1800 cc.

Finance minister Uhuru Kenyatta made the decision in his June Budget as part of government's ongoing austerity measures.

Muthaura said he would hold the PSs personally responsible if they failed to return non-compliant vehicles.

Yesterday Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta confirmed that a directive to return large cars had been sent out to all PSs as accounting officers of their ministries.

"The PSs will be held accountable for failure to comply," Uhuru said.

Among the Cabinet ministers who had yet to return their 'gas guzzlers' yesterday were Naomi Shaban (Special Programmes); Fred Gumo (Regional Development); Charity Ngilu (Water); Dr Paul Otuoma (Fisheries); Amason Kingi (East African Community); and Njeru Githae (Nairobi Metropolitan Development).

Kajwang' is expected to return a new Mercedes Benz bought for his official use just a year ago to replace an old vehicle.

"We shall seize his car anywhere we find him. It is going to be an embarrassing moment for some of these people who think they can disobey government orders," said a top level Treasury official who did not want to be.

Yesterday, Immigration PS Emmanuel Kisombe confirmed that his minister only returned an old car. But he was quick to add that it was the ministry's intention to comply with the directive.

"The car he returned was an old one which was replaced several months ago. We know that the minister's current car is a 1796 cc Mercedes and as such is compliant with the directive. However, we shall still hand it over as directed," Kisombe said.

Kajwang has criticized Uhuru's new transport policy and questioned the rationale behind the decision to buy a similar model car for all ministers and their assistants.

"We are not school children to be given uniforms in the form of Passats," Kajwang remarked recently.

"If the government has said cars must be returned who are we to say no," said his PS Kisombe yesterday.

Kingi has also said he will not return Mercedes as directed and described Muthaura's new order as "dictatorial." "My Mercedes Benz is petrol propelled but only has an engine capacity of 1796 cc which is very much compliant with Uhuru's directive. I will not return it," Kingi said.

Kingi said that he will only return his car if he gets a circular indicating that all Mercedes Benz must be returned.

Treasury PS Joseph Kinyua confirmed that 33 ministers had so far returned 34 cars. Education minister Prof Sam Ongeri returned two Mercedes Benz vehicles which had been assigned to him.

Kinyua said 43 assistant ministers had received the new Volkswagen Passats but only 33 had returned their non-compliant vehicles.

Forty two civil servants including PSs have returned their vehicles and 47 have taken up the new Passats.

"Some 123 Passats have been allocated and 101 old cars returned as directed. Some have picked the new cars but complained their old ones are in garages and would be brought to us soon," Kinyua said.

He said that ministry officials would track down all the cars to ensure that none of the users disobeyed the order.

On Monday Uhuru said that the government was also working on a new transport policy that will streamline use of government vehicles.

"The draft policy is being worked on and would be tabled before the Cabinet soon. Once in place, we shall no longer have any problem with transport facilities again,"Uhuru told a Public Accounts Committee meeting on Monday.

The minister also clarified that the government had only spent Sh499 million in buying the Passats as opposed to Sh5 billion as claimed.