Nairobi MCAs have taken an about-turn and want re-introduction of disbursement of bursaries through cheques.
They don't want electronic transfers to schools' bank accounts, which had seemed like the most efficient way. But the money went astray and the system had problems.
In the current financial year ending June 30, 2022, an additional Sh1 million has been pumped into the bursary fund, increasing it from Sh3.5 million to Sh4.5 million.
Each of the 85 wards is expected to sponsor 200 more students, in addition to the 700 already given bursaries.
In a notice of motion tabled before the house, MCAs urge the Executive to reintroduce the use of cheques in disbursement of funds. They say it is more reliable and dependable than the voucher system.
In April 2019, the county government resolved to use electronic Fund Transfers in disbursing bursary funds directly to schools. The idea was to curb corruption.
At the time, claims arose that some county officials and legislators banked the cheques in their company or proxy accounts. leading to loss of millions of shillings meant for learners.
MCAs and beneficiaries also complained that many cheques were dishonoured due to conflicting signatures and name mismatches.
Highrise MCA Kennedy Oyugi, who tabled the motion, said giving parents vouchers instead of cheques has faced a series of challenges.
“Monies deposited in various schools’ accounts could not be verified by the County Accounts Department due to discrepancies between the vouchers and the electronic transfer system,” he said.
Another concern was that some schools received county funds but did not have clear accountability records.
Bursary scandals are not new at City Hall as MCAs and the Executive have been at loggerheads over the issue.
Due to wrangles, in February this year City Hall disbursed Sh457 million bursary funds to 62,500 learners — but the bursaries were meant for FY 2019-20.
The bursary funds issued in 2017-18 attracted a lot of audit queries, leading then Governor Mike Sonko to raise a red flag on suspicious bank accounts.
In June 2018, Sh297.5 million bursary funds were erroneously sent to a bank account belonging to the University of Maryland, Australia, baffling the MCAs.
Explaining the problem, the Executive said accountants erroneously selected the the health donor fund account instead of the bursary account.
Despite the electronic launch in 2019, there was a delay in disbursing Sh400 million to needy students.
The bursary was to benefit more than 4,000 students across the 85 wards but various problems led to the delay of funds released to school accounts.
Consequently, in July same year, MCAs attempted to grab the mace in the house as they protested against the delay of funds.
Last September, MCAs raised queries over Sh297.5 million bursary funds that were allegedly used to pay garbage collection contractors and lawyers.
This came at a time when schools were set to reopen from October after being closed for seven months because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
(Edited by V. Graham)
