Suppliers and contractors doing business in Kisumu County have accused Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o’s administration of awarding tenders to county staff.
According to traders, the county staff are being awarded tenders through fabricated companies while their Sh2 billion pending bills are not yet settled.
They have urged investigative agencies to probe staff who are benefitting from tenders at their expense.
Last week, traders stormed the Kisumu County Treasury protesting inordinate delays in payment of pending bills .
They demanded immediate settlement of their dues.
The row over payment of delayed salaries has been a bone of contention between the workers and the county government.
Similar delays have been replicated in county assemblies, national government ministries, departments and parastatals.
National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani had asked Parliament to suspend funds allocations to public entities which do not adhere to his directive of clearing pending bill before the end of the financial year.
“Though progressive progress in settling these pending bills by the national government, we still have challenges with county governments that still owe suppliers huge amounts. I urge the house to support our efforts towards enforcing compliance in payment of all verified pending bills by the county governments,” he said.
He noted that the delays in payment of pending bills to businesses that have offered services to both the national and county government has affected the liquidity of the entities.
“In a number of cases, this has led to the closure of businesses and affected the livelihoods of the suppliers,” he observed.
Despite the much publicised debt settlement plan of all the pending bills before closure of the just ended financial year, majority of the institutions are yet to get allocation from the National Treasury.
Meanwhile, casual workers at the Kajiado Referral Hospital are decrying neglect by the county administration and arrears that have accumulated over a period of five months.
County’s Health and Finance CECs promised that they would get their pay from today attributing the salary delays to a cash flow challenge from the national government.
However, the workers accused the leadership of using intimidation and sometimes issuing promises that have not been fulfilled.
