This archive report was first published on 24 September 2019.
Published on September 24, 2019, the Auditor General's office had previously commended Makueni County for its prudent use of funds and development.
However, voters from the county have written to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to investigate the theft of public money by county cartels under Governor Kivutha Kibwana.
The governor's wife, Nazi Kibwana, is at the center of a multi-million shilling scandal involving several projects, including the Thwake Bridge, Water Drilling Rig, Shina Foundation, and Kalamba Fruit plant.
The Thwake Bridge project, which was funded by the county government between 2015 and 2017 to the tune of Sh220 million, was contracted to Prime Quantifiers Limited Company owned by Paul Matheka. However, the company only constructed seven pillars and was paid the full amount in July and August 2018.
The Water Drilling Rig, which was directly imported from India by the county government, was paid for by Biomax, a company owned by an in-law of the governor. Despite being purchased for over Sh40 million, the equipment has never functioned since 2016 and is not registered with the NTSA Tims account as required by law.
The Shina Foundation, owned by Nazi Kibwana, was contracted by the county government to undertake family planning and youth empowerment activities. However, records show that the foundation received two cheques totaling approximately Sh4 million in 2013, and another Sh2 million was later processed to facilitate operations.
The Kalamba Fruit plant, funded to the tune of Sh1 billion between 2013 and 2017, has been described as a white elephant project that has no value for money and has never benefited the people of Makueni.
