Disbelief as Sh240m goes unaccounted in Nyamira county – Weekly Citizen

The county assembly of Nyamira wants Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission to take up a case where its members cited executive for misappropriation of Sh240 million that was part of the unspent balances carried from the 2018/19 financial year.
On Tuesday last week , the debate over the missing cash dominated the assembly’s special sitting that was convened by Speaker Moffat Teya, purposely to consider the supplementary budget which had stalled for over three months.
According to the assembly’s budget and appropriations committee chairman Richard Onyinkwa of Magombo ward, the Sh240 million was part of Sh1.1 billion, money that was meant for development but could not be spent by the respective departments.
Onyinkwa told the house that executive could not explain how the Sh240 million went missing and the only way the mystery could be uncovered was by involving relevant state agencies which can do investigations.

Okong’o Omogeni

There was heated debate at the house when questions arose over executive’s transfer of Sh576 million development budget to recurrent expenditure from the 2018/19 budget leftovers into the 2019/20 expenditures, something which caused sharp divisions among the ward reps after the budget committee recommended that some of Governor John Nyagarama’s flagship projects be frozen.

Some of the projects to be affected are the Nyamira County Referral Hospital’s doctors’ plaza project construction and upgrading of some health facilities across the county.
MCAs remained divided over the decision to freeze some projects with those in favour of the idea saying the executive had set bad precedent by failing to account for part of the monies.
While debating the matter, Nyamaiya MCA Raban Masira said the idea of freezing some projects was in bad faith and that those in support of the proposal did not have the affairs of the county at heart.
Money made for projects has been diverted into personal projects under the directive of Nyagarama. Former Nyamira senator Okongo Mongare has also accused MCAs of being bribed with development money in a bid to protect Nyagarama and his errant officers who are embezzling the funds. Mongare also took issue with the assembly speaker Mofat Teya whom he accused of being part of the ring which has looted money meant for development.
Last week, the South Mugirango MP Silvanus Osoro accused the EACC officers stationed in the Kisii regional offices accusing them of being compromised by Nyagarama and his Kisii couterpart James Ongwae so as to protect their corrupt deals