Sports Kenya: We don't have cash to complete stadium projects

Sports Kenya director general Pius Meto (second left) appearing before Parliament’s sports committee on October 22, 2019 over the status of stadiums in the country. PHOTO | DIANA NGILA |

What you need to know:

  • Contractor paid Sh88m just to clear bushes, Sports Kenya tells Parliamentary committee
  • Marsabit Stadium given Sh295m, but 20 percent of work done with Sh88m paid for clear bushes

The ambitious flagship project by President Uhuru Kenyatta to deliver “state of the art” stadiums seems to have been a mirage as documents tabled in Parliament on Tuesday indicate the dream may not be realised due to massive budgetary reduction to Sports Kenya.

The budgetary allocation for the body tasked with the management of stadiums across the country has been reducing each financial year, raising questions on the seriousness of Jubilee government to realise the delivery of the said stadiums.

In 2013, President Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto promised five new state-of-the-art stadiums and to upgrade several others in their election campaigns in 2013, a pledge that has not yet been fulfilled.

CONTRACTORS ABANDONED SITE

Documents presented before the National Assembly Committee on Sports yesterday by Sports Kenya indicate that the works on the upgrade of various stadiums across the country have stalled and contractors abandoned site due to pending bills amounting to Sh898 million.

According to the documents presented by Director General for Sports Kenya Pius Meto, in the financial year 2016/2017, Sports Kenya was allocated Sh2.7 billion in the financial estimates but ended up receiving a paltry 424 million.

In the 2017/2018 financial year, Sports Kenya was allocated Sh100 million but only received Sh25 million while in the current financial year the, Sports Kenya has not received any coin despite being allocated Sh500 million.

The documents indicate that millions of taxpayers’ money has been gobbled up in seven county stadiums that were earmarked for upgrade while there is little or no work at all to show for the amounts paid.

The fate of the projects, the majority of which have only been 30 percent done now remains in limbo as contractors have refused to go back to work until the pending bills are cleared.

“We have held meetings with these contractors and told them to go back to work as these are not amounts that would make them not to be on site,” Meto told the committee chaired by Machakos Town MP Victor Munyaka.

For instance, Marsabit Stadium in Marsabit County was to be upgraded at a cost of Sh295 million, but only 20 percent of the work has been done while Sh88 million has already been paid to the contractor which was awarded to Benisa Limited.

It emerged in Tuesday’s meeting that the contractor used the Sh88 million to only clear the bushes and have done nothing else.

MORE WHITE LEPHANTS

In Nyeri county, Sh64 million has already been paid for the upgrade of Ruringu Stadium while only 30 percent of the work has been done and it requires a further Sh206 million to be completed.

The contractor doing the works on Wote Stadium has already been paid Sh89 million while only 30 percent of the work has been done.

The Sports Kenya management told MPs that a further 174 million is needed to complete the work.

The contract of the stadium was given to Taphes and Nitrame enterprises.

Despite taxpayers paying Sh1 billion for the refurbishment of the Nyayo National Stadium, Sports Kenya said that a further Sh612 million is needed to complete the work

For the Chuka Stadium in Tharaka Nithi County, the taxpayer has paid Sh119 million and a further Sh130.4 million is needed for its completion with Sports Kenya pointing out that 75 percent of the work has been done.

The report indicates that Karatu Stadium in Kiambu County is only 30 percent done with Sh62 million already paid to the contractor and a further Sh198 million needed for its completion.

Phase one upgrade of Eldoret’s Kipchoge Keino Stadium needed Sh111 million to completed, this despite Sh304 million already having been paid, while phase two of the same stadium requires Sh130.4 million to be completed.

The works on other stadiums that were earmarked to host matches in Africa’s second-tier national football team competition, African Nations Championship (Chan), in 2018.

Kenya was, however, stripped of the rights to host the competition because of delays in preparations and making the stadiums available.

The stadiums that were to host the event include Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, Nyayo National Stadium, Kipchoge Keino Stadium, Kinoru Stadium and Kenyatta Stadium, Machakos.

NOT ABLE TO DELIVER

Appearing on a local TV station in July this year, DP Ruto said the delay on the promise was due to the October 26, 2017, presidential rerun, which used part of the stadia funds.

“Our commitment to deliver on the stadia is solid. We had a time frame. Of course, unfortunately as fate would have it, we went into a second election and spent about Sh13 billion, part of which was supposed to be deployed to do some of those things,” Ruto said.

In February this year, Sports Principal Secretary Kirimi Kaberia said the government will not be able to deliver the five stadia initially promised, but was working to ensure one state-of-art stadium is built before President Kenyatta’s term ends in 2022.