Kericho Contractors and Suppliers Association has distanced itself from companies alleged to have received fictitious payments from the County Government of Kericho, as revealed in an ad hoc committee report tabled before the County Assembly on August 5.
The report revealed widespread procurement fraud across six county departments, with officers colluding with suppliers to inflate prices by up to 300 per cent, including Sh14.98 million paid by the Agriculture Department for undelivered or overpriced animal feed and Sh2.53 million in irregular retention fees paid by the Public Works Department for road projects already completed.
Speaking to the Kenya News Agency at a hotel in Kericho, Association Chairperson Edward Korir stressed that none of the companies named in the report are registered members of the association.
Korir alleged that the companies in question were deliberately established as shell entities designed to siphon public funds through fraudulent schemes, saying their operations were orchestrated to bypass legal procurement procedures and exploit loopholes within the county’s financial systems, and urged the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to carry out a thorough and impartial investigation, warning that failure to act decisively would embolden corrupt networks and further erode public trust in county governance
“The said companies do not meet the required standards for registration and lack valid permits from the county government,” Korir stated.
Korir further decried what he termed as gross injustice, revealing that genuine contractors are owed nearly Sh668 million in pending bills while legitimate businesses continue to struggle without payment yet some questionable firms have been accorded full payments long before completing the contracted works or even without delivering any services at all.
The chairperson also raised concern over what he described as the infiltration of non-local contractors saying the majority of county contracts should be awarded to Kericho-based companies noting that this would not only strengthen the local economy but also ensure fair competition and accountability.
On the other hand, Association Secretary General Elijah Rono accused the county of exploiting contractors by demanding a fee equivalent to two per cent of the total contract value arguing that in cases such as road construction contractors should only be charged for the value of materials like marram and not the entire project cost
Rono appealed to both the EACC and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to take swift action, warning that unchecked corruption would continue to undermine public trust and stall development projects in the region.
He urged county leaders to prioritise the settlement of pending bills to restore confidence among suppliers and contractors, adding that timely payments are essential for sustaining jobs and service delivery.
” The non-payment of local contractors has created a severe cash flow crisis in the county, and many businesses are now on the brink of collapse with the ripple effects being felt across the entire local economy,” Rono stressed