Taita Taveta County under Granton Samboja, Migori (Governor Okoth Obado) and Nairobi (Governor Mike Sonko) are on the spot for being ranked top in spending on trips in the first quarter of 2018/19 financial year with Sh143.53 million,Sh135.48 million and sh127.46 million respectively.
A report by the auditor-general says the executive and the assembly used on both foreign and domestic trips.
The expenditure on domestic travel amounted to Sh119.08 million, Sh38.41 million by members of county assembly (MCAs) and Sh80.67 million by the executive.
The auditor-general noted that this figure was 176.4 percent higher than what was spent in the similar period the previous year.
Reached for comment on the spending, county finance executive Vincent Masawi said he was not in a position to verify the auditor-general’s report.
Senator Jones Mwaruma asked MCAs to keep the executive in check by demanding accountability for all spending.
“We are among the lowest earners of the equitable revenue share by the national government. I intend to petition the Senate to look into the trips to see what value they bring our county,” he said
Traders raised concerns about little spending on development, pointing out that the trips have not yielded fruits.
“We want to see development. I feel these trips are for them to earn allowances,” he said.
Health workers in Taita Taveta have threatened to strike in February due to non payments of their allowances.
