Taita Taveta County – The Senate County Public Investment and Special Funds Committee has blasted Governor Andrew Mwandime over alleged mismanagement and poor financial reporting at Voi and Mwatate municipalities, as well as the Tavevo Water and Sewerage Company Limited.
According to a statement by the Parliament of Kenya, Governor Mwandime failed to provide clear accounts of the utility’s finances, despite a damning report from the Auditor-General.
The report highlighted a “material uncertainty related to going concern”, revealing a negative working capital of Ksh532.7 million and liabilities of Ksh1.08 billion, far outweighing assets—rendering the utility technically insolvent.
Senator Godfrey Osotsi, chair of the committee, demanded explanations for the opaque financial management:
“You are operating a company that is effectively bankrupt, yet you failed to disclose the measures being taken to mitigate this condition in your financial notes,” he stated.
Other issues raised during the grilling included:
Irregular use of customer deposits: Taita Taveta Senator Johnes Mwaruma questioned the handling of Ksh32 million in customer deposits, which should have been held in trust rather than used to cover operational deficits.
Conflict of interest violations: Senator Raphael Chimera highlighted that the company secretary owned two firms providing legal services to Tavevo without formally declaring the conflict, breaching the Constitution’s leadership and integrity requirements.
High Non-Revenue Water (NRW): The utility reported a 50% NRW, leading to Ksh388 million in lost potential revenue.
In response, Governor Mwandime acknowledged the severity of the issues. He announced that the county had:
Established a dedicated NRW coordination unit
Engaged professional debt collectors
Committed to enforcing conflict of interest policies
Begun solarising pump houses to reduce electricity costs
“We are taking measures to address these challenges and restore trust in the utility,” Governor Mwandime assured the committee.
The grilling underscores growing concerns over ethics, governance, and financial accountability within county-run utilities, as lawmakers push for stricter oversight to protect public resources.
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