Universities Under Fire As MPs Expose Their Spending On Failed Tech, Tribal Hiring and Fake Payroll

Universities Under Fire As MPs Expose Their Spending On Failed Tech, Tribal Hiring and Fake Payroll

Kenya’s public universities are facing scrutiny after Members of Parliament revealed significant mismanagement of funds and operations. The National Assembly’s Committee on Public Investments on Governance and Education has uncovered major scandals in the education sector, including ineffective systems, phantom employees, and discriminatory hiring practices.

The committee, chaired by Bumula MP Jack Wamboka, expressed concern over the hundreds of millions spent on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that proved ineffective. These systems were intended to enhance management, but poor planning and subpar vendor selections rendered them worthless.

At the Commission for University Education (CUE), MPs interrogated a Ksh45. 7 million system whose progress remains ambiguous despite Ksh30. 5 million already being disbursed. No completion reports were presented, violating procurement regulations.

The committee also identified a Ksh2. 5 million discrepancy in a car and mortgage loan fund, lacking documentation to validate the transactions. Even more concerning, CUE retained 90% of its surplus Ksh80 million, contrary to public finance legislation.

Kibabii University faced criticism for recruiting 75% of its 430 employees from a single ethnic group. MPs stated that this contravenes the law and national values.

The university additionally expended 64% of its revenue on salaries, nearly double the permissible threshold.

Meru National Polytechnic was criticized for maintaining suspicious payroll records. Auditors discovered fraudulent KRA PINs, unusual birth dates, and over 140 dubious contracts.

The ERP system failed to comply with regulations regarding salary deductions, and administrators disregarded audit recommendations.

Construction initiatives at Meru Polytechnic were also found to be progressing slowly and laden with unauthorized alterations. MPs warned that those accountable would face penalties should they continue violating regulations.

In the meantime, Kisii Polytechnic, Kenya School of Law, and the Council of Legal Education were removed from the meeting for attending without essential officers. They were instructed to return with appropriate teams to elucidate their financial statements.

The committee vowed to persist in advocating for transparency, accountability, and enhanced services within the education sector.