The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
Members of Parliament have instructed the regulator overseeing state corporations to pursue former National Youth Service (NYS) managers and board members in an effort to recover millions of shillings lost during their time in office.
An Auditor General’s review found that the funds may have disappeared through stalled projects, improper payments, and questionable hiring decisions.
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A parliamentary committee led by Navakholo MP Emmanuel Wangwe has determined that former accounting officers, finance officials, and board members should bear personal responsibility for the losses, arguing that decisions made under their watch left the youth agency saddled with incomplete projects and contested payments.
The Public Investments Committee on Social Services, Administration and Agriculture (PIC-SSAA) has called on the Inspector General of State Corporations to launch recovery proceedings against the implicated former officials, with interest applied at the prevailing Central Bank of Kenya rate.
The committee’s review covered NYS financial records from the 2019-20 to 2024-25 fiscal years. Lawmakers expressed concern that NYS had failed to reclaim public funds linked to construction projects that stalled long after contractors had already received the bulk of their payments.
Among the cases highlighted was the construction of a double-span kitchen, dining hall, and barracks at the NYS Engineering Institute in Ruaraka. Although the project, contracted in 2011 at Sh192 million, saw the contractor paid Sh186 million, the site was reportedly abandoned before completion. A follow-up inspection by the committee revealed unfinished structures marked by cracked walls and floors, deteriorating from years of neglect. MPs blamed NYS management for not enforcing contract terms that could have allowed the government to recoup losses tied to the delays.
Also scrutinized was the construction of a VIP stand at Gilgil College Parade Ground, where the committee found that despite a reduction in the project’s scope, the contractor was paid Sh14.6 million rather than the adjusted contract sum of Sh12.7 million. MPs have ordered the recovery of the resulting Sh1.94 million overpayment from the former accounting officer, finance officer, and board members involved.
The report additionally flagged the payment of Sh7.53 million in gratuity to a former director general, despite pending litigation involving the officer. The payment had gone through after the human resource director recommended it and the then Principal Secretary in the State Department for Youth Affairs raised no objections. The committee has now directed the Inspector General to verify whether the court case has since been resolved in the former director general’s favor — and if not, to recover the full amount, plus interest, from those who approved the payment.
Questions were also raised over the hiring of a Procurement Specialist on a two-year, Sh6.7 million contract. The specialist earned a monthly salary of Sh322,040, exceeding limits set by the Public Service Commission. The committee noted that the role largely overlapped with that of the existing head of supply chain management, making the expenditure unjustified and lacking value for money.
Beyond financial irregularities, the committee warned that vast tracts of NYS land — roughly 2,247 hectares across Yatta, Mavoloni, Athi River, Mombasa Technical Institute, and Mwatate — remain unfenced and vulnerable to encroachment, with informal settlers already moving in. The current accounting officer has been given three months to develop and implement a land management and security plan that includes boundary demarcation, fencing, and ongoing monitoring.
In a separate directive, the committee recommended that the Director of Public Prosecutions pursue legal action against a former accounting officer over irregularities tied to sewerage works at the NYS Training Institute in Naivasha, where a contractor received Sh30.7 million — about 58 percent of the total contract value — before abandoning the project.
The committee also called for investigations into Sh99.7 million paid to trainers and lecturers outside the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Database (IPPD) system.
To help resolve NYS’s persistent financial troubles, MPs have directed the agency’s current accounting officer to present Parliament with a comprehensive turnaround strategy addressing budgeting, financing, and long-term sustainability. They also called for a broader inquiry into the ownership and protection of NYS land held by various government ministries, departments, and agencies to prevent further encroachment.
The committee concluded by reprimanding the former accounting officer for violations of the Public Audit Act.
