• The materials were to be used in putting up 65 ECD centers.
• Ten senior county officers have so far been arrested and charged.
Nandi Governor Stephen Sang has denied claims of rampant corruption in his government and ask rivals to let him work for residents.
Sang on Wednesday told off Senator Samson Cherargei over the graft claims and asked him to let police complete investigations into the loss of construction materials valued at more than Sh200 million.
The materials were to be used in putting up 65 ECD centers.
Ten senior county officers have so far been arrested and charged.
On Tuesday, Sang suspended three executives alongside 12 other senior officers to pave way for the investigations.
The governor also formed an ad-hoc committee and gave it one month to probe the mess in the affected departments.
But Cherargei said the team cannot investigate departments in which they serve in. The senator blamed Sang for the mess in the county. Cherargei claimed more than Sh2.5 billion county funds cannot be accounted since Sang took over in August 2017.
“It's him to take responsibility and not the small fish," Cherargei said. He asked the DCI and the EACC to probe the governor and his senior officers.
However, Sang said his opponents were taking advantage of the theft of material to make wild claims on non-existent issues.
“It’s not possible to misuse county public funds as easily as they think. The auditor has not indicated anywhere that Sh2.5 billion cannot be accounted for in Nandi. Such open lies will not help the leaders as they think,” Sang told the Star.
He said the county was operating within the law and that those implicated in graft will carry their own cross.
“We have made it clear to the officers in all departments that anyone engaging in theft or graft will pay the price on their own," Sang said.
The governor denied he had accumulated wealth from county coffers and asked Cherargei to stop making wild allegations that he can not substantiate.
Youth leaders led by Ben Maiyo and Josphine Limo defended the governor and accused his opponents of seeking political mileage from fake claims.
“The governor has taken action against his own officers besides the investigations being done by the DCI. It’s only mature that the senator and his allies allow the probe to be concluded instead of coming up with fake claims hoping to get political mileage," Limo said.
The Nandi County Assembly has threatened to impeach more than 12 executives and senior officers accused of laxity and engaging in corruption
Edited by P. Obuya