•Ghost projects cost the county millions of shillings.
•Sh14 million paid for air travel without the approval of relevant accounting officers.
The Bungoma government irregularly released Sh20 million for scholarships last year, Auditor General Edward Ouko has said.
In his latest report, Ouko says the county spent the money without a proper policy.
He says Governor Wycliffe Wangamati's administration did not follow procedure in awarding the scholarships and neither did it show the criteria used for picking the beneficiaries.
The county was also faulted for failure to show acknowledgement receipts from schools showing the intended beneficiaries were the ones getting the money.
Further, the county failed to provide admission letters of the intended beneficiaries to authenticate if applicants for scholarships had been admitted to schools.
“The education ministry awarded scholarships yet no policy had been formulated and the criteria on how the scholarships were awarded was not presented for audit verificationAuditor General report
Ouko accuses Bungoma of engaging in ghost projects with the result that the county lost money.
Among the projects are Dairy Commercialisation Project in Bukembe which cost Sh9.3 million and Mihuu water project at a cost Sh4.1 million.
“The county made a payment of Sh9,377,350 to a local contractor for dairy commercialisation network in Bukembe. However, physical verification of the project revealed it is not functional, notwithstanding, full settlement of the contract price,” the report states.
The Mihuu water project is not operational with questions raised on the bill of quantities. There were no specifications on dimensions of the powerhouse that cost Sh500,000, water pump Sh1.2 million and water kiosk Sh350,000.
The county is also faulted for paying Sh14 million for air travel without the approval of relevant accounting officers. Boarding passes were not attached as proof of travel while staff in lower job groups were paid for air travel.
“No boarding passes were attached as proof of travel and there were instances where some staff, who were not within the approved job groups, were allowed to use this mode of travel,” the report says.