The county further paid Ksh. 3,942,097 to a contractor for drainage works and slope protection of the Masakwe–Nyanchogu road at a contract sum of Kshs.3, 942,097. However, a physical verification conducted on 14th October 2020 revealed the stone pitching was done at a cost of Ksh. 2,184,000 had already been washed off by storm-water in some sections
Barely a week after the immediate former Kisii County Governor James Ongwae declared that he has officially resigned from the Orange Democratic Party; details have now emerged about how his administration mismanaged hundreds of millions during his ten-year tenure in office.
According to the Auditor General, the Kisii County Government spent Ksh. 4,454,073,166 employees as wages. During the period between 2019 and 2020, the County Government collected Ksh. 8,743,886,949 as revenue and spent a total of Ksh. 4, 454,073,166 on wages representing 51% of the total revenues raised. This is contrary to Regulation 25(1) (b) of the Public Finance Management (County Governments) Regulations, 2015 which limits the County Executive’s expenditure on wages and benefits to not more than 35% of the total revenue for the year.
Further, a review of the personnel records revealed the County Executive recruited 272 officers with none reserved for people with disabilities. This is contrary to Section B 23(2) of the Kisii County Public Service Human Resource Policy which requires that at least five (5) per cent of all appointments shall be for persons with disabilities.
The county further paid Ksh. 3,942,097 to a contractor for drainage works and slope protection of the Masakwe–Nyanchogu road at a contract sum of Kshs.3, 942,097. However, a physical verification conducted on 14th October 2020 revealed the stone pitching was done at a cost of Ksh. 2,184,000 had already been washed off by storm-water in some sections. Further, gabion boxes were laid at a cost of Ksh. 1,020,000 were laid using very light gauge hexagonal double twisted steel meshes which were already torn. Consequently, the propriety and value for money of Ksh. 3,914,130 expenditure could not be ascertained.
The county government further paid Ksh. 794,006,152 to a contractor for the construction of the reproductive health unit at Kisii Referral Hospital for four years commencing from 19th March 2019 to 19th March 2023.
Investigations however reveal that the contract was awarded to a non-citizen contractor even though it was reserved for a citizen contractor in the 2018/2019 procurement plan in line with Section 33(2)(f) of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015 which promote preference and reservation schemes for small and micro enterprises and other disadvantaged groups, citizen contractors, women, youth, persons with disabilities, minorities and marginalized groups in public procurement at the County.
Further, it was revealed that the registration certificate and practicing license for the contractor from the National Construction Authority expired on 30th June 2019. The contractor was, therefore, carrying out the construction works unlawfully contrary to Section 7 of the National Construction Authority Regulations, 2014 which states that a person or firm shall submit an annual application for renewal to the Authority.
