NAMATA’s Director General, Eng. Francis Gitau. [Photo: Courtesy]
By TWV Investigative Team
Did the Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (NAMATA) unlawfully acquire land earmarked for sports development? That is the explosive question currently gripping the nation following revelations by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu of a controversial land transaction involving a 15-acre parcel excised from Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, for the construction of a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) assembly depot.
NAMATA’s Director General, Eng. Francis Gitau, is now under intense scrutiny over the agency’s involvement in the deal. In her latest audit report, the Auditor General accuses Sports Kenya, the custodian of the country’s sports infrastructure, of entering into an irregular Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NAMATA. The agreement granted access to the stadium land for a transport-related project, an action Gathungu deems a direct violation of the Sports Act, 2013, which defines the legal mandate of Sports Kenya.
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Crucially, the MoU was executed without the approval of the relevant Cabinet Secretary, further compounding its illegality. “In the circumstances, the management was in breach of the law,” the Auditor General’s report states unequivocally.
The revelations point to what appears to be a deeply embedded scandal involving not only unauthorised land transfers but also extensive procurement irregularities in stadium refurbishments amounting to nearly Sh2 billion.
Beyond the Kasarani land issue, the audit exposes irregularities in tenders totalling Sh1.96 billion for the refurbishment of Kericho Green Stadium, Bukhungu Stadium in Kakamega, and Masinde Muliro–Kanduyi Stadium in Bungoma.
At Kericho Green Stadium, a contract worth Sh408 million was awarded in a manner that blatantly disregarded procurement procedures. According to the report, the contractor commenced work well before the contract was signed on 4 September 2023. A letter dated 19 July 2023 confirmed this, with 50% of the work reportedly completed by 5 September. The contract was curiously backdated to 11 August, before the formal award. The rush was allegedly prompted by a directive to host Mashujaa Day 2023 at the venue, but the Auditor General notes that urgency does not excuse the breach of procurement laws.
The situation at Bukhungu Stadium is equally alarming. Sports Kenya spent Sh760.1 million on Phase III of the stadium’s refurbishment for the CHAN 2024 tournament, despite Phases I and II, undertaken by Kakamega County, remaining incomplete. No MoUs, contractual documents, or bills of quantities were made available for audit. As of 24 September 2024, Phase II had yet to be finalised, rendering the contracting of Phase III both premature and unjustified. “The value for money and propriety of the expenditure could not be confirmed,” the report concludes.
In Bungoma, the rehabilitation of Masinde Muliro–Kanduyi Stadium, valued at Sh799.1 million, was found to be similarly flawed. The contract was signed on 1 March 2024, yet the contractor accepted the award on 4 March, clearly breaching the mandatory 14-day standstill period required under procurement law to allow for appeals by unsuccessful bidders.
These findings suggest a pattern of systematic disregard for legal and financial controls within Sports Kenya, even as the nation prepares to co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). The mismanagement of public funds and diversion of state land for unrelated infrastructure raise serious questions of accountability.
Public reaction has been swift and unforgiving, with many Kenyans questioning whether NAMATA and Sports Kenya are colluding to repurpose public sports assets without legal authority. One senior government official, speaking anonymously, remarked: “This is no longer about incompetence. It looks like a coordinated land grab.”
As public pressure mounts, there are growing calls for urgent parliamentary intervention, criminal investigations, and the resignation, or prosecution, of officials involved. The integrity of Kenya’s public institutions, and the future of its sports infrastructure, may well hang in the balance.
