Sh274 million consultant payment sparks probe into Kenya Power’s last-mile project

Kenya Power is under intense pressure from Members of Parliament (MPs) to recover Sh274 million paid to a consultant whose presence at last-mile connectivity project sites cannot be confirmed, raising concerns over possible financial loss.

The National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Energy questioned the payment after Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, in her report for the financial year ending June 30, 2021, revealed that auditors found no evidence the consultant showed up at the designated project locations to supervise the work.

“There was no evidence of the consultant’s personnel’s presence at those sites, raising doubt on whether they had been deployed as per the contract,” the audit stated.

The audit report also cited a lack of critical documents, such as attendance sheets and meeting minutes, that could have confirmed the consultant’s involvement in the project.

During a committee meeting on Thursday, Pokot South MP David Pkosing, who chairs the panel, demanded that Kenya Power furnish Parliament with the names of all consultants hired and provide inspection logs or field reports to support the payment.

Pkosing ruled out the possibility that every consultant under the contract failed to report to the project sites.

“It cannot be that they were all unavailable. We are talking about Sh274 million paid to people who may not have done the work,” he said.

“I am not convinced that they can all be away,” Pkosing added, directing the power utility to provide the missing details or hold those involved financially responsible.

In response, Kenya Power’s managing director, Joseph Siror, defended the contract, saying the supervision model used was not based on constant presence but on project milestones.

“The consultant supervises multiple sites per lot, which cuts across several counties,” Siror explained to the committee.

He added that during the audit period, the consultant was engaged in other active project sites while the audit team worked with Kenya Power engineers.

Despite this explanation, auditors maintained that milestone-based supervision should still be supported by proper documentation, which was not available.

“The available minutes tell whether the consultant personnel were present at those sites. Minutes help us get the details,” an officer from the Office of the Auditor General told the committee.

Kenya Power insisted that only one consulting firm was contracted and was responsible for deploying the supervisors, and that all inspections had been carried out.