Machakos County has come under scrutiny over Ksh96 million held by a bank as security for an employee car and mortgage loan scheme since 2019. The Senate Committee on County Public Investments and Special Funds raised the concerns during a meeting with Governor Wavinya Ndeti and her Executive to review the implementation of House resolutions arising from an earlier report by the committee.Auditors found that while the county had placed Ksh96 million with the institution as security for the scheme, only Ksh55.3 million had been disbursed to six beneficiaries.The arrangement drew further scrutiny because employees benefiting from the scheme are also required to provide personal security, including title deeds and logbooks, to obtain the loans.“We cannot have Ksh96 million in public funds sitting in an account without earning interest while beneficiaries are also required to provide their own security. The county must review this arrangement and demonstrate that it gives value to the public,” said Senate Committee Vice-Chairperson Beth Syengo, who chaired the sitting.Governor Ndeti defended the arrangement, saying the money was not simply lying idle in the bank but was being used as collateral to enable SBM Bank to provide loans from its own funds.“The Ksh96 million is security for the scheme, not money that has simply been left unused. However, we accept the concerns raised and are engaging the bank so that the arrangement can be reviewed and improved,” Ndeti said.The governor told the committee that the county was already engaging SBM Bank over the terms of the arrangement and would seek to renegotiate the agreement.Machakos Senator Agnes Kavindu also called for changes to the scheme to ensure it benefits a wider pool of county employees instead of remaining accessible to a limited number of beneficiaries.“County resources must serve employees fairly. If this scheme is sustainable, then its structure should allow more eligible staff to benefit while protecting public funds,” Kavindu said.Senator William Kisang, meanwhile, challenged the county to provide documentation to support its assurances, including the revised agreement, evidence of negotiations with the bank and a loan book showing how the funds were being used.The committee also raised concerns over incomplete municipal asset registers, compliance with revenue accounts and failure by the county to meet requirements on ethnic diversity and representation of persons with disabilities in recruitment.This is not the first time Machakos is coming under scrutiny over finances and administration. In April 2026, a Senate committee reviewing the county's 2024/2025 financial statements noted that trade payables stood at KSh4.3 billion, with the committee directing the county to address payables that had remained outstanding for more than 365 days.The county has also recently been caught up in a dispute over its 2026/2027 budget, with Ndeti rejecting a Ksh17.8 billion appropriation bill after accusing the County Assembly of making changes worth Ksh853.96 million.The governor argued that the changes could affect programmes and essential services.The budget dispute has coincided with complaints from county employees over delayed August salaries, unremitted statutory and third-party deductions, and the suspension of their medical insurance cover.Workers protested at the county headquarters on September 22, demanding that the issues be resolved.The Senate committee has now directed Machakos County to renegotiate the agreement with the bank, submit a revised draft and loan book, complete the valuation of municipal assets and ensure future recruitment meets diversity requirements.
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