Killer Patel dam was illegal, Water CS tells Senators

Patel Farm General Manager Vinoj Jayakumar (right) with Nakuru County Commissioner Joshua Nkanatha during a meeting with Soali Dam victims on June 28, 2018. [Harun Wathari/Standard]

The killer Patel dam was constructed illegally, a Cabinet Secretary told a Parliamentary committee yesterday.

The Water ministry only allowed the dam owner to build a weir to divert water to his expansive farm, Cabinet Secretary Simon Chelugui (pictured) yesterday told members of a Senate select team.

A weir is a small low enclosure or fence built across a river or stream to raise water levels or divert its flow.

The Patel Dam burst during floods, killing 47 people in Solai in Nakuru County. The Senate team is investigating the tragedy.

“Records in our possession show that the owner applied for a renewal of the permit in March 2004, where he sought to build an enclosure on Watkins Stream in the farm. The proposed diversion by the weir was 2.5 meters high,” Mr Chelugui said.

Officers from the Water Resources Management Authority (Warma) last conducted an inspection at the dam in 2009, he added.

“After the incident, an inspection and assessment done by the ministry at the dam established that there was an anomaly about the records we have and what is on the ground,” the CS, accompanied by his Principal Secretary Joseph Irungu, told the Mutula Kilonzo Jnr-led committee.

Warma Chief Executive Officer Mohamed Shurie was also present. The CS was hard pressed to explain how the mega project escaped the attention of authorities.

“You are basically telling us that your officers on the ground turned a blind eye to a big dam that is not licensed. How is that possible, considering that the dam had a capacity of over 190 million cubic litres of water?" Posed Mr Kilonzo.

But Chelugui absolved himself from blame, saying the owner - Perry Mansukhlal Kansagra Patel - was expected to provide information about the project to authorities.

“According to the Water Act 2016, the owner of a dam is required to volunteer information to Warma on their project. Mr Patel took advantage of the leeway in the Act and never shared information with the officers. This loophole in the law needs to be sealed,” he said.

Kilonzo said his team would visit the dam on Friday accompanied by Chelugui.