By Nyanza Wire 
When Eve Akinyi Obara was elected MP for Kabondo Kasipul in the August 2017 General Election, she made history. Running on the ODM ticket, she became the first woman ever elected to represent the constituency in Parliament. For many residents, it was a turning point in our politics. There was genuine optimism that history would usher in a new style of leadership founded on integrity, accountability and development.
Nearly every election in Kenya is built on hope. Her campaign promised classrooms, roads, security, bursaries and a better future for all Kabondo Kasipul. But elections do not ultimately define leadership as much as audit reports do.
Long after campaigns have ended and it is time to execute work, the Auditor-General quietly examines whether public money was spent lawfully and whether development actually reached the people. Unlike campaign speeches, these audit reports have no applause. They contain real numbers which never lie, procurement records, bank statements and uncomfortable questions, revealing the true story of governance.
The Auditor-General’s report on the Kabondo Kasipul National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) for the financial year ending June 30, 2020 deserves much more attention by Kabondo Kasipul residents than it has received. It raises serious questions about financial management, procurement, project implementation and accountability during Eve Obara’s first term in office.
One of the first concerns relates to the constituency’s financial records themselves. The Auditor-General noted that the NG-CDF bank reconciliation statement reflected unpresented cheques worth KSh1.334 million. At the same time, payments amounting to KSh1.035 million had already been recorded in the cash book despite not appearing in the bank statement. Consequently, the Auditor-General stated that the reported cash and cash equivalents balance of KSh467,170 could not be confirmed.
Bank reconciliation is a fundamental financial control in any public institution. If auditors cannot independently verify the amount of money reflected in official accounts, confidence in the reliability of the entire financial reporting process is inevitably weakened.
The report then turns to development projects.
Kabondo Kasipul NG-CDF reported spending KSh3.59 million on security infrastructure, including the construction of Kokwanyo Police Post and Othoro Police Station. Ordinarily, every public construction project leaves behind a clear documentary trail with tender evaluation reports, signed contracts, completion certificates and payment vouchers. These documents allow auditors and voters in the constituency alike to establish if procurement followed the law.
According to the Auditor-General, those records were not produced for audit and without them, independent verification becomes impossible. Education projects attracted similar concerns. The constituency reported spending KSh12.74 million renovating classrooms at Anjech, Kogalo, Pany Komolo, Saramba, Ringa and Lwanda primary schools.
Again, the Auditor-General reported that key procurement documents, including contracts, tender evaluations, certificates of completed work and payment vouchers, were missing. No explanation has ever come from Dr Eve Obara’s office explaining all these loopholes.
Public money is not accounted for through promises or speeches. It is accounted for through evidence. Perhaps the most symbolic finding concerns Oriwo Youth Polytechnic. The audit questioned KSh1 million transferred for the construction of what was described as a modern ICT hub. The polytechnic, built on great-grandfather’s piece of land, has no ICT hub. It does not exist.
A modern ICT hub should be visible, functional and serving young people. If taxpayers financed such a project, they are entitled to see the completed facility, not merely an entry in financial records.
The most alarming section of the report concerns stalled development projects. The Auditor-General established that 37 projects valued at KSh43.85 million had not even commenced by the close of the financial year. Development is not measured by budget allocations is something the constituency CDF office has failed to grasp.
It is measured by completed classrooms, functioning health facilities, usable roads, operational ICT centres and projects that improve people’s lives. Dear Dr. Obara, money sitting on paper changes nothing. The report further found instances where funds approved for one project were spent on different works without evidence of approval from the NG-CDF Board. Such findings may appear administrative, but they go to the heart of public accountability.
At Kolweny Primary School, funds had been allocated for constructing a modern toilet, yet only excavation had been completed. At Abuoye Primary School, the renovation works undertaken differed from those originally approved. Each case raises legitimate questions about planning, implementation and oversight. Yet perhaps the greatest concern is not what the Auditor-General found.
It is that so few people know about it. Most residents of Kabondo Kasipul are unlikely ever to read the finer details of the Auditor-General’s report. That information gap benefits politicians far more than it benefits citizens. Accountability becomes optional when voters do not read audit reports.
In Kenya, the Auditor-General performs a constitutional duty by identifying financial irregularities and weaknesses in public administration. We, as citizens, have an equally important responsibility to read those findings, ask difficult questions and demand satisfactory answers.