15 million Wangamati@3 event saw 3,000 sit-fillers paid, a County employee bagged 150,000 for streaming live on Facebook

In Summary;

• Artists robbed 170,000/=
• Partisan staff paid 150,000 to stream live on FB
• 868,000 for Governors and DGs’ breakfast and Super
• Absentee Off-site screens/Generators worth 1.8 million
• 9,738,160.00 purported to have been used for Advertising/Marketing
• 66 journalists paid Kshs. 198,000
• Wangamati @3 (video)
• DOWNLOADABLE; PAC report
• #iKUWEiKUWE Corner

Chief officer who couldn’t tell the exact cost of the event claimed existence of pending bills

Bungoma County governor Wycliffe Wangamati on Friday, 18^th September 2020 held a glamorous event dubbed Wangamati at Three at Kibabii University which attracted hundreds of guests and was widely seen as a political function meant to announce his performance since taking over office. The event that was characterized by controversy after controversy capped with uncertainty and secret meetings was arguably the most expensive County event ever.

The Bungoma County Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee on its own motion vide a resolution at its meeting held on Tuesday, 6^th Oct, 2020 at County Assembly buildings resolved to investigate the officers involved in the planning and execution of the said programme.

Officers interrogated were;

• CECM Finance and Economic Planning, Ms. Esther Wamalwa,
• Chief Officer (CO) Governor’s Office – Mr. Denson Barasa,
• Chief Officer (CO) Public Service Administration, Mr. Abidan Kapchanga
• Chief Officer (CO) Finance Ms. Dinah Naswa.
• Chief Officer (CO) Economic Dev., Mr. Fredrick Makhandia

Total expenditure on Advertising/Marketing;

Watch the entire Celebration here;

CEC Finance, Esther Wamalwa told the committee that the law re-designated all chief officers as accounting officers and therefore threw the ball to CO Finance, Ms Dinah Naswa who had been in office for about two weeks prior to the event and CO Economic Development Mr. Fredrick Makhandia

Ms Diana Waswa;

• There was no specific budget for Wangamati at three years as a programme in the approved budget for financial year 2020/21, but instead some budget lines related to the programme like; domestic travel and subsistence allowance, catering services, Field operation allowance and Boards, committees and conferences were used to facilitate the event

Imprests advanced from the Governor’s office;

• Tim Machi                        810,00
• Bonny Wayne Nyongesa    950,000
• James Namunga              990,000
• Jacob Junior                    920,000
• Patricia Nyongesa            990,000
• Mercy Wakoli                  900,000
  •         Total;                5,560,000

Imprests advanced from the Governor’s office;

• Victor masinde        958,000
• Devorah Musimbi     950,000
• Wenslaus Puria        950,000
• Edward Chepkotit    800,000
• Obed Hebyon          670,000
  • Total;                4,328,000

Kibabii University provided and was paid for the following;

• 3 Hall @10k 30,000
• 750 Normal Lunches @650 487,500
• 250 VIP Lunches @1,200 300,000
  • Total; 817,500

Hotel Itoya (Busia) supplied;

• Mega dome; 1,200,000

Media Coverage;

• Western Television Co. Ltd – 392,160
• West FM                             328,000
• The Standard Group            1,824,000
• Tandao Media Group            500,000
  • Total;                  3,044,160

Mobilization Kshs. 800,000;

• Governor’s office;
  • 20,000 x 15 = 300,000/=
• Public Admin;
  • 500,000/=

Summary of total payments made towards the WANGAMATI AT THREE event

1. Imprests 9,888,000
2. Catering Services 2,017,500
3. Media Coverage 3,044,160

Total;    Kshs. 14,949,660

OBSERVATION;

Wangamati @3 had no budgetary allocation but instead some budget lines related to programmes like, domestic travel and subsistence allowance, catering services, field operation allowance and boards, committees and conferences were used to facilitate the event

~ Chief Officer (CO) Finance, Ms. Dinah Naswa ~

1. Payment in respect to imprests drawn in favor of staff members were paid from budget vote items whose approved budgetary allocations were adequate enough to facilitate the payment
2. Copies of Imprest warrants for all payments made to various officers were submitted to the committee and NO SURRENDER HAD BEEN SUBMITTED in contravention of Regulation 93 of Public Finance Management, County Government regulations 2015
3. NO IMPRESTS surrenders in respect to the imprests advanced to various officers were submitted to the committee for the expenditure in question
4. Some imprests were drawn for payment of accommodations services offered to invited guests. This service does not call for cash payment but submission of invoices by hotels to procuring entities for processing of payment through the system
5. The payment made towards media coverage were beyond the vote item’s approved budgetary allocations in the two depart
6. The county requested for a quotation from Kibabii for provision of Lunch but it was not clear if Hotel Itoya was pre-qualified to offer tents services
7. There was misapplication of Kshs. 1,470,000 diverted from the line code 2210710 meant for training officers in senior management course at Kenya school of government, Drivers, refresher courses, ICPAK training and Training of Enforcement Officers
8. A total of 1,908,000 diverted from vote item code 2210310 meant for Civic Education exercise across the 45 wards was dicerted to Wangamati at Three
9. The Accounting officer alleged that the total expenditure for Wangamati at Three was Kshs. 9,888,000 contrary to the actual amount that was spend for the event at Kshs. 14,949,6600 a difference of 5,061,660. The Chief officer couldn’t tell the actual funds spent on the program. Further he pointed out some payments are still pending; hence the total figure spend was likely to go beyond Kshs. 14,949,660
10. The officers that appeared before the committee gave conflicting details on the name of the event as Mid-term review report and Wangamati @3
11. Wangamati@3 also referred to as Midterm report, is a program that is not provided for in the Public Finance Management Act and other legal provisions. Furthermore, it was not in the annual work plan and budgetary allocation for the program as per the program and activity based budgets approved for the county government of Bungoma. The expenditure of 14,949,000 was therefore a program that brought no value for money

RECOMMENDATIONS;

1. The accounting officer violated the provisions of section 135(7) and 156(4)(b) of the public finance Management Act 2012 respectively by overspending a sum of 2,124,560 representing 254% over and above the required 10% on publicity vote
2. CO Denson Barasa also flouted Regulations 93 of the Public Finance Management (County Government) Regulations 2015 by failing to recover temporary imprest advanced to the defaulting officers totaling to 9,888,000 which remained un-surrendered after 7days provided for period… Imprest defaulters to be surcharged
3. CO Public Administration violated the provisions of Regulation 42(1)(b) of the Public Finance management (county government) Regulation 2015 by misapplying Kshs. 1,470,000 and Kshs. 1,908,000 to cater for expenses related to Wangamati@3 when the money had been appropriated by the assembly for training officers and Civic education in 45 wards…. The Chief Officer to be reprimanded
4. There was no value for money for the expenditure of 14,949,660 to the residents of Bungoma County contrary to the provisions of Principles of Public Finance as per article 201(d) of the Constitution and Section 149(1) of the PFM Act, 2012 which provided that money should be used… The CECM Finance and Economics to discipline her Chief Officer, Officer of the governor

Download; REPORT BY PAC COMMITTEE ON WANGAMATI AT THREE (1)

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#iKUWEiKUWE Corner;

1. I wonder why the committee allowed a list comprising items that were not delivered to be tabled
2. The County paid a County Govt. staff 150,000 to stream the event LIVE on Facebook…
   • Live streaming refers to online streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real time. It is often referred to simply as streaming, but this abbreviated term is ambiguous because “streaming” may refer to any media delivered and played back simultaneously without requiring a completely downloaded file
3. The truth is …Only 36 journalists were paid 1,000/= each
4. Most sit-fillers aka members of County staff who formed about half of the participants were not paid a single cent and there ain’t a record to prove otherwise
5. An event with 2,000 ordinary + 50 exec seats hosted 3,000 invited guests plus 200 staffs… How now??? The 3000 figure was cooked.
6. Advertising and Marketing;

• The County lied to the unsuspecting assembly committee by duplicating functions, throwing them across departments at the end of the day… Kshs. 9,738,160.00 is purported to have been used to pay for Advertising/Marketing
• 4 Media houses are owed 3,044,160 for streaming the event LIVE… meaning the event cost skyrockets to 18 million
• The documentary is owed 900,000/=

6. The County Public Service Board is yet to be paid its attendance fee… Funds were being sourced to reimburse CPSB members and some staff
7. Entertainment;

• As the County purports to have paid 40,000 each to 5 musicians… The truth is only Steve-Kay, Muchungaji and Chapa Ilale were given 30,000 to share… Other Musicians were chased away including the star attraction of the day Wabwile wa Barasa… someone robbed artists 170,000/=

8. There was zero breakfast since the travelling guests delayed to arrive. The DG himself took tea at Solitaire (Total – Kanduyi) with his Wife the late Nangekhe before proceeding to Kibabii as Wangamati remained at his Ndengelwa home till late… The senior guests did not have dinner in Bungoma neither did they sleep here… Which hotel was involved in cooking these figures?
9. Pending bills;
   1. 900,000/= for the documentary
   2. 4 Media houses are owed 3,044,160
   3. County Public Service Board yet to receive attendance fee