Former Kenyatta University Vice Chancellors Prof. Olive Mugenda and Prof. Paul Wainaina have been summoned by a National Assembly committee to respond to audit queries linked to an alleged Sh6.2 billion loss of public funds.
The two former university chiefs will appear alongside Acting Vice Chancellor Prof. John Okumu before the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education, which is reviewing a special audit report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu covering the university’s accounts.
The committee, chaired by Luanda MP Dick Maungu, is examining audit queries relating to the 2018/2019 to 2020/2021 financial years, alongside issues highlighted in a special audit that dates back to the 2014/2015 to 2016/2017 financial years.
Members resolved to summon the former vice chancellors after concluding that the acting Vice Chancellor could not adequately explain decisions made before he assumed office.
Committee Chairperson Dick Maungu said the officials who served as accounting officers during the period under review must personally account for the audit findings.
“The issues being tackled relate to 2014/2015 onwards, and it would be unfair to expect the current acting Vice Chancellor to answer for matters he neither handled nor has institutional memory of,” said Maungu.
He warned that the committee would make far-reaching recommendations against individuals found culpable, saying those responsible for any misuse of public funds would be held accountable.
“We have seen what appears to be massive looting of public funds and inappropriate conduct. Those responsible must be held to account because we cannot allow public property to be misused or looted,” he said.
Narok Woman Representative Rebecca Tonkei supported the decision to summon the former vice chancellors, saying the amount under investigation was too significant to ignore.
“We are dealing with over Sh6 billion. This is not petty cash. Professor Mugenda and Professor Wainaina must appear before this committee and explain where this money went,” she said.
Central Imenti MP Moses Kirima also backed the move, citing concerns over expenditure of more than Sh300 million on the university’s Kigali campus.
He said a previous parliamentary inspection found little evidence of value for money from the project.
Kasipul MP Boyd Were said the committee could not complete its inquiry without hearing from the officials who approved the expenditure.
He cited audit concerns including unsupported expenditure, overpayments and the establishment of the Kigali campus before obtaining the required approvals.
Appearing before the committee, Acting Vice Chancellor Prof. John Okumu acknowledged that many of the issues raised in the audit occurred before his appointment and agreed that his predecessors were better placed to respond.
“The members are correct. There are issues that were handled by the chief executive officers of the day, and my former bosses would be in a better position to respond to most of the matters raised,” he said.
Prof. Okumu also told MPs that several stalled development projects flagged in the audit remain incomplete because of financial constraints.
He cited the Children’s Hospital, the School of Business and the Crystal Facility as some of the projects that have seen little or no progress, attributing the delays to financial challenges, including inadequate government funding.
The committee also questioned procurement irregularities highlighted in the audit, including the issuance of local purchase orders after goods had already been delivered and the use of expired purchase orders.
University procurement officials admitted that the irregularities occurred but said the current office holders were not in charge at the time. They added that the institution has since strengthened internal controls to prevent similar incidents.
The committee further resolved to summon former procurement officials who served during the period under review and is also considering inviting former and current members of the University Council to explain whether key projects, including the Kigali campus, received the necessary approvals before implementation.
Maungu said the committee intends to conclude the long-running inquiry during the current Parliament by holding a series of hearings to establish individual responsibility before making recommendations for further action.
Email your news TIPS to Editor@Kahawatungu.com — this is our only official communication channel
