Fire trucks, toilets that cost counties millions

In August, Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto caused a stir on social media after he unveiled fire engines in the county. The fire engines were Tata trucks that looked like they had been painted red and fitted with ladders and water containers.

But Mr Ruto defended the trucks, saying they had been fitted with water tanks that could hold up to 15,000 litres of water.

"Sorry for the wrong information circulating on social media about the fire trucks and equipment. We purchased them at Sh7 million each," he said.

But locals said the county could have invested in state-of-the-art fire fighting trucks and not what exposed them to ridicule. "While we commend the efforts to have in place trucks for fire fighting, it is a shame to grab a secon- hand TATA truck, paint it red and then place a hefty price on it," said Nicholas Kibet, a resident.

Nyandarua County was also on the spot after it approved construction of five eco toilets in Kasuku, Njabini, Miharati, Ndaragwa and Captain Markets, each at Sh4 million.

The contractors, who were invited to bid, were however not on the list of pre-qualified suppliers for the financial year 2013-2014. The Kasuku Eco Toilet project was abandoned after it was found to have been done on a road reserve although Sh695,241 had already been paid to the contractors.

Nakuru County spent Sh3.1 million for the launch of a controversial free Wi-fi project, which did not take off as expected. The Wi-fi malfunctioned hours after it was launched.