Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire diverted Sh10 million meant for the construction of the County Aggregated Industrial Park (Caips) to bankroll a political event that was attended by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, a Senate committee heard on Wednesday.
The damning revelations emerged during the Senate County Public Accounts Committee meeting, where the governor admitted to being “under immense pressure” to fund the event targeting boda boda riders.
Appearing before the committee chaired by Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang’, Ms Mbarire, who is also the chairperson of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), said her administration was under duress to finance the event, which was attended by Prof Kindiki.
The county chief appeared before the committee to respond to audit queries by Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu for the financial year ended June 30, 2025.
The first-term county chief had come under fire from the senators for choosing to prioritise a political event instead of a development programme meant to spur industrial growth and create jobs for residents.
The legislators questioned why the county illegally withdrew funds from the special-purpose account to fund the event, while neglecting the crucial industrial park project.
Cornered, Governor Mbarire told the senators that her administration was under significant pressure to honour commitments made to various boda boda groups in the county.
She said they had already pledged to offer support to the different boda boda Saccos they were to launch, despite not having a budget for the event.
“We had already promised that we were going to give the Saccos some money, and so we used the money to honour our commitment,” said Ms Mbarire.
The governor’s response drew the ire of the committee members, who said such acts are becoming a trend in counties, where governors blatantly disregard public finance laws while spending taxpayers’ money.
Senator Kajwang’ compared the Embu case to a recent revelation in Vihiga County, where funds were reportedly diverted to finance a housewarming ceremony.
“What is worse between the funding of a boda boda function and the admission by Vihiga County that they raided accounts to finance a housewarming? I think this one is worse,” Kajwang’ said.
CAIPs are projects jointly funded by the national and county governments to spur economic growth in the devolved units.
The projects were hailed as a panacea to the country’s widespread unemployment and a boost to rural economic growth. But close to three years down the line, no single project is complete.
“Governor Mbarire and the officers involved should be surcharged for engaging in an illegal transaction,” said Mr Kajwang’.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna said the governor should face severe punishment for knowingly breaking the law, arguing there is a difference between a person who breaks the law unknowingly and those who knowingly engage in illegality.
“These are criminals from Embu who broke the law knowingly, and they deserve much harsher punishment,” Mr Sifuna said.
However, Governor Mbarire pleaded for leniency, insisting that it was the first time such an incident had occurred in Embu County.
“It is the first time we did it in Embu County. We did it under immense pressure, and I want to promise this House that we will never do it again,” she said.
