• Ouko says that 'recipient' school could not confirm receiving the money
• The auditor also questions criteria used by the Fund managers to disburse the money
Image: ENOS TECHE
Needy students could be suffering at the hands of corrupt county officers who misuse cash meant for their education.
An audit report has revealed that millions of bursary cash could be ending up in the pockets of a few corrupt officers.
Auditor General Edward Ouko lifted the lid on the rot in the management of County Bursary Fund across all the 47 devolved units thus subjecting the poor students to untold suffering.
In Samburu, for instance, the report revealed a possible loss of Sh52.9 million that Governor Moses Lenolkulal administration had set aside in the budget for bursaries in the 2017-18 financial year.
“No acknowledgement letters or receipts from institutions hosting the students were presented for audit review to confirm that the bursaries were received by the learning institutions,” Ouko said.
He added, “It could not be ascertained whether the bursaries totalling Sh52, 987, 758 awarded during the year reached the intended beneficiaries and were properly accounted for.”
The situation is similar Laikipia where the receiving schools could not confirm receiving Sh38.6 million that the Laikipia County Bursary Fund (LCBF) reported in its financial books to have disbursed to the counties during the year.
In the 2016-17 financial year, the managers of the LCBF could not explain the expenditure of Sh50.4 million, further raising concerns the money could have ended in the pocket of a few people.
The audit had raised a similar query the year before where the fund’s managers could not explain the expenditure of Sh41.0 million.
In Nyamira county, only Sh12.7 million or 11 per cent of the Sh123.9 million allocated for the Nyamira County Education Support Fund was sent to schools during the year.
“Failure to disburse the remaining amount of Sh121.0 million means that the needy students were denied funds for Education,” reads the report.
Ouko further questioned the criteria used to The disburse bursary funds across the 20 wards in the county.
While some wards received as high as Sh1.8 million, others received a paltry Sh5,000. Bogichora, Basamaro, Kiabonyoru and Township wards received 1.2 million, Sh1.8 million, 1.5 million and Sh1.6 million respectively.
On the other hand, Bokeiria, Manga and Kamera got Sh21, 000, Sh5,000 and Sh70, 000 respectively during the year.