Residents living along Emali-Ukia Road in Nzaui Sub-county of Makueni have been urged to ignore misinformation being peddled on social media that the road construction has stalled, despite the contractor having been paid.
Deputy County Commissioner (DCC) at the Makueni County Commissioner’s Office George Lugo, called on Chiefs, Assistant County Commissioner’s, Deputy County Commissioner and the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), to conduct sensitisation exercises, to put the record straight and the right information get to the people, so as to end speculations and suspicions about the ongoing project.
The call comes at a time when unnamed individuals are allegedly peddling lies that the contractor of the road has been paid the whole amount of the project monies, besides claiming that there was no work going on at the site.
DCC Lugo made the observation when he led members of the County Implementation Coordination Management (CICM) Committee on an inspection of the road Thursday.
Mr Lugo, who is also a Personal Assistant in the County Commissioner’s office, challenged the Administrators and KeNHA officials to conduct frequent barazas, to enable the local residents to get reliable and correct information about the progress of the tarmacking of the road and other enquiries they want clarified.
The DCC added that the Committee will ensure the contractor fast-tracks the tarmacking of the road to ensure the works are complete within the specified time, hence ensuring the residents enjoy the benefits once the project is finished.
“There is a need for Administrators in this Sub-county to conduct frequent barazas to counter the misinformation being peddled on social media about this project. Also, the CICM members will ensure the contractor is facilitated to fast-track the works to ensure the road is completed within the specified period,” said Lugo.
The Presidential Delivery Unit (PDU), Eastern Region, Loice Shuma, said there was a need for accurate and reliable information for local residents, besides frequent visit to monitor the progress of various projects being carried out in the area.
“It should be mentioned here that the CICM members were impressed by the progress of the road which is supposed to be tarmacked for 20 kilometres between Emali and Matiliku towns, where over Sh 1.077 billion will be spent in Phase 1,” remarked Shuma.
Engineer Rashid Bule said that the road was at 22 percent, saying Sh 258 million has been approved and paid, While Sh 819 million is yet to be paid to Prime Quantifiers the contractor who was awarded the contract on 22nd September 2025 and commenced works in December 2025.
However, Engineer Bule who represented the Resident Engineer said that the heavy rains pounding the area have delayed their works besides the recent diesel fuel scarcity that impacted their works.
“The unpredictable rainfall patterns slowed down progress. Also, the recent diesel fuel scarcity impacted the efficiency of our operations,” said Eng. Bule.
Eng. Bule appealed to the residents who are within road reserve and have been issued with notices, to move out and avoid forced eviction to allow for the works to continue seamlessly.
During the inspection, the Committee members also visited the Emergency Construction of Kasikeu and Mikuyu Bridges and approach roads in Mukaa Sub-county, where they established the works were progressing well.
The construction works from Kyambeke to Kikoko Market are being undertaken by Kabuito Contractors Limited.
by Patrick Nyakundi
