EACC asked to investigate Nakuru Governor Kihika over Sh7.8 billion stalled projects, Sh1 million incomplete toilet

EACC asked to investigate Nakuru Governor Kihika over Sh7.8 billion stalled projects, Sh1 million incomplete toilet

Senators have called on the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to probe Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika’s administration over alleged misuse of billions of shillings, stalled projects and questionable payments to private law firms without documentation.

Documents tabled before the Senate Public Accounts Committee on Wednesday revealed that the county had failed to account for Sh7.8 billion stalled projects, including a Sh1 million market toilet that has remained incomplete for three years.

“What happened to this toilet, just worth Sh1 million, that has stalled since 2019?” Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang, also the committee chair, posed.

In response, Kihika said, “I don’t want to answer in a way that I will mislead the Senate.”

However, the committee pressed on, querying stalled Early Childhood Development (ECD) toilets and raising concerns over the welfare of pupils.

“What happened to these ECD toilets stalled for years? So, are the pupils using bushes to relieve themselves?” Taita Taveta Senator Johnes Mwaruma posed.

Kihika explained that the toilets were intended to ease pressure on existing facilities, since younger pupils had been sharing with older learners.

“We will do a report with more details, but I wanted to build ECD toilets because they were sharing with older pupils,” she said.

The governor further came under scrutiny for authorising the hiring of private law firms without approval from the county attorney. The Auditor General had flagged Sh22 million paid to law firms without contracts or supporting documents.

“They have a county attorney, but they went ahead illegally to hire private law firms. They are yet to provide us with documents,” the auditor noted.

Pressed to justify the payments, Kihika said, “Where is the attorney to answer this? I don’t understand why he isn’t here.”

Beyond stalled projects and undocumented payments, the committee found that Nakuru County is operating without four critical financial structures. These include: a County Public Service Board, an Audit Committee, a Chief Officer of Finance and a qualified Head of Accounting Services.

Senator Kajwang raised concerns over the appointment of an unqualified head of accounting.

“How are you, head of accounting services? And you are not a member of ICPAK, supervising CPAs, governor, how does that work? Because those are positions of merit, they are not positions like the CECs’,” he posed.

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• EACC asked to investigate Nakuru Governor Kihika over Sh7.8 billion stalled projects
• Sh1 million incomplete toilet

Kihika admitted that the county faced a leadership gap due to retirements and transfers.

“We actually had one, but he recently retired, and we are currently recruiting for that position,” she said.

The PAC chair pressed further, saying, “So, to put it in context, Nakuru County does not have a county public service board, no audit committee, no chief officer of finance, and no qualified head of accounting services, four very critical institutions in the county. How do you expect to achieve your goals? In the absence of these key structures.”

In her defense, Kihika blamed delays on a lengthy recruitment process and the county assembly’s recess.

“It’s just unfortunate that it all lapsed at the same time, and the succession planning may have been long, and the process for recruitment is long. There is nothing much we could do about it, but the names are now at the county assembly, and once they are out of recess for a special sitting, they will vet the candidates,” she said.

The committee warned that the absence of these officers left the county’s financial management at risk of collapse.

Meanwhile, a Nakuru resident, Anthony Kipyegon, has separately petitioned the EACC to investigate financial irregularities flagged in the Auditor General’s and Controller of Budget’s reports for FY 2023/2024 and 2024/2025. In his September 2, 2025, letter, Kipyegon cited payroll fraud, mismanagement of funds, stalled projects, revenue leakages and billions in pending bills as urgent red flags facing the county.

“These are not minor administrative lapses but potential economic crimes, abuse of office, misappropriation of public funds, and deliberate sabotage of service delivery, all of which fall under the jurisdiction of EACC. I hereby demand that the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission commence immediate investigations into these matters,” Kipyegon wrote.

The Senate committee has said it will also forward its findings to the EACC for further action.