A section of Members of Kisii County Assembly in Kisii County is appealing to the Ethics and Anti-corruption body and the Department of Criminal Investigations to investigate recent remarks by area Governor Simba Arati on development in the county.
The MCA’s accused the governor of allegedly peddling lies during the recent visit by President Dr. William Ruto and a live media show held in the outskirts of Kisii town early this week.
Speaking in Kisii town Thursday, they said the claims by Arati on roads, health, education, Agriculture, trade and industry were false and demanded that he accounts for any moneys he purportedly used in the projects.
Bobasi Botangaire ward MCA Thomas Obare denied Arati’s claims that he had done 128 Early Childhood Development Classrooms saying that during the last budget, only completion of ongoing projects was captured. Obare sought to clarify that during the current 2023-2024 budget, there was no implementation of ECDE project in the county.
“As regards to the oversight role by the MCAs under article 135 of the constitution, we ask the governor to make it public the number and location of the classrooms he purported to have constructed,” he said.
The MCA demanded that all public details concerning the project including the tendering process be made public including the identity of the contractors, date of commencement, ending and handing over of the contract and project.
On Bursary, Bouse Mairura called upon the EACC and DCI to urgently investigate embezzlement of public money.
Mairura said this year the assembly set aside bursary funds to a tune of Sh225 million, representing Sh5 million for every ward, while the governor’s office was allocated Sh20 million.
However, according to the MCA, top up the bursary forms are yet to be issued for the learners to utilize the money come January next year.
“Scholarships must be distributed evenly in the 45 wards according to county bursaries Act,” he said.
On roads, Bogiakumu Ward MCA Ishmael Bosire said the 200KM road the governor purported to have built were projects done by the national government.
Bosire noted that this year the assembly had allocated sh. 750m for roads in the whole county, but the budget is yet to be implemented even after being altered two times since it was passed in June this year.
“The roads he has been launching in Bogetutu, Mosocho, Nyatieko and parts of Bobasi and Nyaribari chache are not his projects,” he said.
Bosire accused the governor of reducing the last supplementary budget by Sh300m to construct an industrial park a move he said will affect the ward level.
He added that the markets in Magena and Marani, which he said he had built were started by former governor James Ongwae under the national Agriculture and Rural Inclusive roads Project, which was funded by the World Bank, when he was the chairman in one of the Agriculture departments during former regime.
On Avocado and Banana factory, they appealed to Arati to prudently utilize the allocation given to the county to deliver to the county residents.
During the president’s visit to Kisii County at Mosocho town in Kitutu central Sub County last weekend, Arati said that he had found only 81 ECDE classrooms and built 128 of them in one year.
Arati also indicated he had in the same period constructed 200Km of road in various parts of the county.