Education institutions put on the spot for violating public finance rules
“The committee will not tolerate any form of mismanagement or discrimination in our education institutions. We must ensure proper use of public funds and equal opportunities for all,” Wamboka said.
The National Assembly has called out several public learning institutions for poor financial management, biased recruitment, and failure to meet audit requirements.
The National Assembly Committee on Public Investments on Governance and Education, led by MP Jack Wanami Wamboka, exposed misuse of funds and irregular hiring in its latest hearings.
Vice Chancellors and Principals were challenged to account for millions spent on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that are not working as intended.
The committee noted that ERP failures were mainly caused by poor vendor choices and lack of technical guidance.
A key example was the Commission for University Education (CUE), which received Sh45.7 million in 2018 for an information system. Despite paying Sh30.5 million, the project had no clear reports or completion date.
This breached procurement laws.
CUE was further questioned over a Sh2.5 million discrepancy in a loan scheme with no proper paperwork. It also failed to surrender 90% of its Sh80 million surplus to the National Treasury, which is against the Public Finance Management laws.
Kibabii University faced sharp criticism for hiring 75% of its 430 staff from one ethnic group.
MPs said this undermined efforts to promote national unity. The institution also overspent on salaries, using 64% of its income, nearly twice the allowed amount.
Meru National Polytechnic was flagged for questionable payroll entries. Auditors raised concerns about fake or duplicate KRA PINs, unclear birth details, and 143 unusual contracts.
The ERP system also failed to process legal deductions, and management ignored audit findings.
Lawmakers were also unhappy with slow construction works and unauthorized changes at the institution. They warned principals of personal penalties for breaking procurement rules.
The Kenya School of Law, Kisii National Polytechnic, and the Council of Legal Education were dismissed from the meeting for failing to present all required officers.
They must return and face the committee fully prepared.
"The committee will not tolerate any form of mismanagement or discrimination in our education institutions. We must ensure proper use of public funds and equal opportunities for all," Wamboka said.