Probe water towers scam

Corruption is so entrenched in the public sector that revelations of malpractices and outright theft in any of the institutions do not come as a surprise.

Now on the spot is the agency charged with protecting water towers, which are critical in environmental conservation.

An audit has revealed the possible loss of Sh147. 7 million. The accounting officials in the Ministry of Environment and the Kenya Water Towers Agency (KWTA) cannot explain how the money was spent on a bamboo project.

Indeed, Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has flagged the supposed establishment of a bamboo demonstration centre on a 50-acre site as a ghost project.

This is a continuation of the pilferage and wanton waste in government agencies and other public organisations. These scarce public resources are often diverted by crooked insiders and their external accomplices. As a result, the would-be beneficiaries of the projects are denied the benefit from those facilities. 

The non-existent bamboo project was expected to be a joint programme by the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), Elgeyo-Marakwet County and the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (Kefri). The implementing agency was KWTA, which was set up to coordinate and oversee the protection, rehabilitation, conservation and sustainable management of water towers.

But last August, Environment Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale closed down the agency. He says it was duplicating the roles of KFS, Kefri and the National Environment Management Authority. But Mr Duale reportedly ignored the Attorney-General’s advice on the agency’s legal status.

The water towers are rich ecosystems teeming with flora and fauna that significantly sustain ecological balance and boost socio-economic activities, including agriculture, energy generation and tourism.

The accountability concerns should not be so quickly buried with the agency. The culprits must not be spared and protected. They must face the music.