Thursday, 24 April, 2025
Committee cracks whip on Universities and TVETs over ethnic bias and financial irregularities.
Bunge Towers, Parliament Buildings Wednesday, April 23, 2025
The Committee on Public Investments on Governance and Education, chaired by Hon Jack Wanami Wamboka (Bumula), has raised the alarm over widespread mismanagement in public universities and tertiary institutions.
The mismanagement in the learning institutions ranges from botched Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations, financial irregularities, and skewed hiring practices.
While appearing before the committee, Vice Chancellors and Principals were put on the spot to explain how hundreds of millions in taxpayer funds were being spent on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that have failed to deliver value for money.
The committee noted that most institutions were grappling with complex integration issues and data migrations due to lack of expert oversight and poor vendor selection.
The Commission for University Education (CUE) had awarded a Kshs.45.7 million contract for an Integrated Management Information System in 2018. At the time of the audit, Kshs.30.5 million had already been paid, yet there was no clear completion date or comprehensive implementation reports, in breach of Regulation 137 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Regulations, 2020.
A discrepancy of Kshs.2.5 million was also noted in a mortgage and car loan scheme fund, with no documentation to justify the scheme's creation, operations, or transactions.
Additionally, the Commission failed to remit 90% of its surplus Kshs.80 million as required by the Public Finance Management Regulations, 2015, placing its management in violation of the law.
Meanwhile, Kibabii University was grilled over lack of ethnic diversity in hiring. Out of 430 staff members, a staggering 75% hailed from the same ethnic community.
The university also breached fiscal regulations by spending 64% of its revenue on salaries—nearly double the legal ceiling of 35%.
The committee demanded immediate measures to align staffing policies with national cohesion goals and financial prudence.
Meru National Polytechnic was on the spot over questionable payroll records. The Auditor General flagged multiple irregularities including missing or duplicate KRA PINs, dubious birth dates, and 143 questionable employment contracts.
The ERP system had failed to regularize payroll deductions as per the law, and management was accused of failing to act on the audit's recommendations.
Construction works at the institution were also marred by unauthorized changes and slow progress, with lawmakers warning of possible surcharges for principals who flout procurement laws.
Kisii National Polytechnic, Kenya School of Law, and the Council of Legal Education were turned away by the committee for failing to comply with the audit process and not showing up with all responsible officers. They have been summoned to reappear at a later date.
Chairman, Hon. Wamboka emphasized the committee’s commitment to ensuring transparency, accountability, and equitable service delivery in the education sector.