The Public Investment Committee wants the National Treasury and the Ministry of transport to avail funds to the Kenya Rural Roads Authority to clear all its pending bills.
The rural roads agency owes contractors and other service providers more than 60 billion shillings in pending bills.
Pending bills are a major headache for the government with the pending bills verification committee domiciled at the National Treasury reporting it has received claims totaling to 664 billion shillings, with the road sector leading with 173 billion shillings.
Parliament now wants the national treasury and the Ministry of Roads to develop a payment plan to help the three road agencies namely Kenya Rural Roads Authority, Kenya National Highways Authority and the Kenya Urban Roads Authority clear all their pending bills.
Appearing before the Public Investment Committee of the National Assembly to respond to various audit queries raised by the Auditor general, KERRA Director General Eng. Philemon Kandie says pending bills are affecting the implementation of various rural roads in the counties hampering socio-economic development.
“KERRA is committed to completing all stalled road projects under the authority” KERRA DG -Eng. Philemon Kandie.
Adding that: “KERRA plays a critical role of developing rural roads for socio-economic development” KERRA DG.
During the two-days appearance, KERRA managed to clarifiy audit querie raised by the Auditor general for the fiscal year 2021/22 including the issue of Total Security where the Authority presented documentation supporting the 16 million shillings expenditure whose clarification had earlier been sought by the Committee.
The Authority was subsequently given a clean bill of health by the powerful fully cleared Public Investments Committee.
The Committee noted that the roads sector which contributes at least 10pc of Kenya’s annual wealth is a critical enabler of socio-economic development in the country.
Similarly the committee highlighted KeRRA in particular which plays a crucial role in enabling projects under the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda.
To facilitate the development of roads in the country, the committee is proposing the accounting officers of the three road agencies to have the final say on road development and budgeting, a role currently under the Budget and Appropriations Committee.
