Contractors defend Governor Mutai against planned impeachment

They defended the governor over accusations of leakage of county revenue

In Summary

• The contractors' secretary Elijah Rono requested the EACC and the auditor general to investigate and audit the projects claimed to have been executed by the MCAs.

• Rono promised that they would stand with the governor, saying they would defend him from the planned impeachment.

Contractors in Kericho County led by their Secretary Elijah Rono addressing the press at a Kericho Hotel in Kericho town defending Governor Eric Mutai from a planned impeachment motion by the MCAs.
Contractors in Kericho County led by their Secretary Elijah Rono addressing the press at a Kericho Hotel in Kericho town defending Governor Eric Mutai from a planned impeachment motion by the MCAs.
Image: KNA

Contractors in Kericho have defended Governor Erick Mutai from plans by Members of the County Assembly to impeach him over accusations of leakage of revenue collected in the county.

The contractors, led by their secretary Elijah Rono and Chairman for Dispute Resolutions Richard Langat, accused Kericho MCA's of double standards, claiming they have been performing like contractors in their wards instead of playing their oversight role.

Rono, who was flanked by other contractors, accused Kericho MCAs of demanding to be paid money for the projects and contracts that were awarded to their proxy companies.

He requested the EACC and the auditor general to investigate and audit the projects claimed to have been executed by the MCAs.

“What the MCAs are attaching to their intended impeachment is malicious since they should have impeached him at the end of last financial year," Rono said.

"Now that disbursement of funds to counties is soon to be done, they have chosen to threaten the governor with impeachment so that the executive can find ways of countering it by promising them lucrative contracts and projects in this financial year.” 

Rono promised that they would stand with the governor, saying they would defend him from the planned impeachment.

The contractors further accused the MCAs of sabotaging service delivery at the wards by using proxies to do contracts, which the contractors were supposed to do.

He said the role of MCAs was only legislative, oversight and not implementers.

Langat said the planned impeachment by the MCA was pure malice since the ward reps were entangled in a conflict of interest.

He said since 2013, some contractors had not been paid for work done, but the ones being done by the MCAs were paid, and since the governor has pronounced himself to pay all pending bills, they now want to impeach him.

Langat accused the MCAs of ill will and appealed to Governor Mutai to stand firm as residents of Kericho would support him.

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