Women, youths cry foul at CBC classroom tenders

Women, the youth and disabled have complained about the award of tenders for construction of additional Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC).

They say the presidential directive that locals around schools be prioritised has been flouted for the benefit of wheeler-dealers, mostly men.

The government intends to deliver at least 11,000 new classrooms by the year’s end ahead of the junior secondary school rollout.

"The President did not say the tenders be awarded to local males. He said the opportunities be awarded to locals who would table proof of competence," said Cecilia Wanjiku of the Central Region Federation for African Women Educationists.

She said the registration of contractors, undertaken by the county commissioners, was done clandestinely and approvals to commence works was “simply fallacious”.

“Let all county commissioners publish names of the contractors they registered. List them by names, location and competencies. Then release a list of the contractors who are undertaking those projects," said Ms Wanjiku.

Youth groups and people living with disabilities had a similar cry. Murang'a South Youth Alliance chairman Mixson Warui said the contracts went to those with connections and godfathers.

"Contracts to implement government projects are picked on all criteria, save for competence and locality. Project committees use the opportunity to pursue self-interests. It's not a secret that CBC classrooms are being built by the well-connected," he said.

Mr Warui said youths with technical know-how but lack capital and connections have been overlooked.

30 per cent minimum rule

For Institute of Budget boss Elias Mbau, "government projects that do not require specialised technical know-how should be awarded to the lowest-placed abilities in society.

"It has reached a point where low sum contracts that need no specialisation be awarded. Our obsession with big companies, big names and big figures is denying our grassroots the much-needed opportunities to transform lives," he said.

 Mr Mbau said women, the youth and the disabled should be allocated not less than 30 per cent of all government tenders.

Murang'a-based Vision Challenged Farmers Self-Help Group chairman Damaris Muthoni said classrooms can be built by any registered group.

"All we needed was to give a quotation and then employ masons. We have ministerial guidelines that a classroom should not cost more than Sh782,000. In fact, we can deliver a standard and safe classroom at a cost of less than Sh200,000. Those profit margins are the ones making us be alienated," she said.

Regretting the situation, Kiambu Senator Kimani Wamatangi, for his part, said most procurement boards are in the business of “selling tenders” to get kickbacks, some as high as 10 per cent of the gross cost.

 "They give you a local purchasing order worth Sh100 million and you have to give them a kickback of Sh10 million. Without that, you are not in business. They have transformed devolution cash into a scramble to enrich cartels," he said.

Speaking recently on Inooro TV, Mr Wamatangi, who is the Senate Majority whip, said contractors and suppliers who insist on doing clean business end up having their payments withheld, hence the tragedy of huge pending bills.

Corruption

He termed it easy to identify corrupt officials owing to their rapidly changing fortunes.

"It is easy to know what is happening in these county offices. We know these people, who, when they were first put into office, only had small cars attached to a bank loan," he said.

But after only six months in office, such people moved from their village homes to leafy suburbs complete with own homes and a fleet of fuel guzzlers, he added.

"We know those whose girlfriends were village women but after accumulating wealth from ‘selling’ tenders, they shifted those women to flats in urban centres. Some county governments have become dens of corruption," he said.

“You shall know the corrupt by the rapid change of their concubines' glitter in looks and lifestyles."

Mr Wamatangi said contractors and suppliers have been reduced to dealmakers where adherence to honesty, quality and desire to build the country has been replaced by greed to rip off the economy and impoverish people.

The senator urged the electorate to make wise decisions when electing leaders and kick out and shun the corrupt.

"Corruption is hard to conceal. All the corrupt who are in positions of authority today are known. We also know of the criminals who have pitched bids to be elected. As voters, the first duty to protect the country from having such criminals from accessing power belongs to you," he said.

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