This archive report was first published on 19 September 2019.
On September 18, 2019, President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered the immediate cancellation of the Kimwarer Dam project, citing financial and technical unviability. The project, valued at Sh 22.2 billion, was found to be overpriced and reliant on a costly pumping mechanism to supply water. It was also discovered to be situated on a geological fault line.
However, the cancellation has sparked outrage among leaders allied to Deputy President William Ruto. Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, representing Elgeyo Marakwet, took to Twitter to express his discontent, claiming that the cancellation was part of a long-term plan to smother the project.
"Planned Cancellation of Kimwarer and restructuring of Arror dams doesn’t surprise me at all. The plan all along was to kill the projects," Senator Murkomen tweeted.
The Senator further accused the Technical Committee, chaired by Principal Secretary for Infrastructure Paul Maringa, of misleading the President. He argued that the committee's composition did not reflect ethnic and regional balance, leading to a deliberate act of discrimination against the people of Elgeyo Marakwet.
"The Technical Committee didn’t carry out public participation. Elgeyo Marakwet County has been denied the rightful share of national projects in a deliberate act of discrimination," Senator Murkomen stated.
He urged President Uhuru to constitute a transparent team to review all projects in Kenya without ethnically profiling some regions. The Senator also assured the people of Elgeyo Marakwet that they would do everything to ensure justice is done.
