Monday, 30 June, 2025
House Audit Committee grills Namata over audit queries, demands financial accountability
Parliament Buildings Thursday, 26th June, 2025
The Public Investments Committee on Commercial Affairs & Energy, chaired by Pokot South MP Hon. David Pkosing, has put the Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (NaMATA) on the spot over a series of audit queries ranging from budget underperformance, irregular expenditures, and prolonged financial mismanagement.
The Committee examined NaMATA’s audited accounts for the financial years 2019/20 to 2022/23, questioning the Authority's stewardship of public funds.
Appearing before the Committee, NaMATA Director General Eng. Francis Gitau defended the Authority’s operations, attributing most anomalies to external funding constraints and transitional accounting practices.
However, MPs raised concern over the glaring discrepancies in financial management and questioned NaMATA’s capacity to deliver on its mandate.
One of the most pressing issues raised was the 47% underfunding of the Authority’s operations, with only Kshs. 602 million received against a budgeted Kshs. 1.13 billion.
Even more troubling was the under expenditure of Kshs. 466 million, which the Committee argued directly compromised service delivery.
“How can you plan effectively if you're always shooting in the dark with funding?” Hon. Pkosing asked.
The Committee also flagged irregular issuance and surrender of imprests, with over Kshs. 7.7 million in outstanding advances at the close of the 2020 financial year.
In some instances, officers were issued fresh imprests without accounting for previous ones, in contravention of the Public Finance Management Regulations.
NaMATA was also taken to task over unexplained hospitality expenditures amounting to Kshs. 3.9 million, some of which were paid to State Department officers despite the existence of their own budgets. Additionally, board expenses worth Kshs. 1.66 million were recorded in a different financial year, violating standard accounting principles.
The audit also uncovered a staggering over-expenditure of Kshs. 1.8 billion in development funds a 256% deviation from the approved budget.
NaMATA defended the figures, citing a transition from cash-based to accrual accounting, but failed to present requisite Treasury approvals.
Another point of contention was the Kshs. 23 million in acting allowances paid to staff who had been in acting roles for over four years far exceeding the six-month cap under public service rules.
Worse still, these allowances were not taxed, defying income tax regulations.
The Committee expressed alarm at NaMATA’s continued reliance on manual accounting systems, which expose public funds to manipulation and errors.
Eng. Gitau assured MPs that automation plans were underway and a vendor had already been selected for implementation.
Further, the Committee demanded explanation over Kshs. 2.1 billion in outstanding trade payables, with Kshs. 1.9 billion owed to a contractor for BRT works along Thika Road.
MPs warned that continued delays in payment could attract penalties and stall vital infrastructure development.
While the Director General acknowledged most audit concerns and outlined corrective measures including tighter imprest control, updating asset registers, and seeking supplementary funding from Treasury MPs insisted that financial prudence must be enforced without compromise.
“The people of Kenya cannot continue to fund a system where accountability is always an afterthought,” Hon. Pkosing said.
“NaMATA must streamline its operations and prove that it's capable of managing metropolitan transport effectively and transparently.” said Hon. Pkosing.
The Committee directed NaMATA to furnish it with all annexures referenced in their responses, including evidence of Treasury approvals, updated asset registers, and new board appointments.