Governor Paul Otuoma’s efforts to deliver on the pledges he gave to the people of Busia County during the run-up to the last general elections could hit a dead end if he fails to crack the whip on rogue officers most of whom he inherited from his predecessor, Sospeter Ojamoong.
It has been discovered that officers attached to the county’s Alcoholic Drinks Control are colluding with bar and restaurant owners to deny the county the much-needed revenue. It has been discovered that the officers have failed to collect revenue from licenses and application fees from liquor traders. Sources say that the officers instead collect protection fees and allow friendly bar owners to operate without paying for the licenses.
Last year, the officers failed to collect annual application and license renewal fees totalling Ksh. 4,118,000 from the seven sub-counties. In Nambale Sub-County, Ksh. 253,000 was never collected, Funyula Ksh.529,000), Butula Ksh. 414,000, Matayos Ksh. 251,000, Budalangi Ksh.925,000, Teso North Ksh. 487,000 and Teso South Ksh. 1,259,000.
Governor Otwoma’s new administration should ensure that the officers who are charged with the responsibility of collecting revenue from annual application and license renewal fees are held to account for the failure to do their jobs properly.
