Audit reports on the Ministry of Water have exposed irregularities that could have cost the tax payer millions of shillings. A report by Auditor General tabled in Parliament indicates that there was a deliberate, well orchestrated plan to steal from the public coffers even before tenders for the dams were advertised.
The report was tabled days after Treasury and the Kenya National Audit Office released other reports showing that up to Sh5.96 billion disbursed to the National Water Conservation and Pipeline Conservation for the construction of five dams, can’t be accounted for.
According to the report tabled on Thursday, comprehensive feasibility studies on the dams were not done before awarding the multi-million contracts."The corporation (NWCPC) does not appear to have carried out comprehensive feasibility studies on the dams in order to assess and establish their financial and technical viability and sustainability,” reads the auditor general’s report in part.
The controversial dams are Badasa Dam in Marsabit, Maruba Dam in Machakos, Umaa dam in Kitui, Chemususu Dam in Koibatek and Kiserian dam in Ngong.
The Parliamentary Committee on Lands and Natural Resources is winding up its probe into the alleged scam. The KACC, which has also been probing alleged corruption at the Water ministry, also said it is about to complete its investigations.
Water minister Charity Ngilu has vehemently defended herself claiming some individuals had turned against her after she blocked them from stealing public money allocated to the ministry.
According to the report tabled in Parliament, due to failure by the ministry to undertake feasibility study, construction work on all the fives dams has since encountered various design and technical challenges.
The report notes that the corporation hired the services of consultants at a fee of Sh80 million before first conducting feasibility studies and that some contractors were given drawings that date back to 1982.
The Kiserian dam should have been completed by January 5, 2011 but it is not yet done.
Badasa Dam was scheduled to be completed in December this year, but as of November last year, 16 months after the works began, only a third of the work was completed.And despite being behind schedule, the government had paid Sh1.15 billion-half the contract sum.
Umaa Dam, in Ngilu’s Kitui County, had been projected to cost Sh824 million and the contractor has already claimed Sh 816 million. The contractor has also revised the cost of the project to Sh 1.4 billion. The project has since stalled.
The auditor general has also noted that key records touching on the five dams were not availed for audit. "Key records detailing the procedures and criteria used in identification of the firms pre-qualified for construction works and consultancy services were not made available for audit review,” notes the auditor general.
The auditor general adds that the disappearance of some original tender documents and other related documents further complicated the audit work.“In absence of the records it has not been possible to establish whether or not the successful firms were qualified and competent to offer the services or undertake the works under the respective contracts"
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