Senate wants termination of Sh22.2b Kimwarer dam suspended

Senate now wants cancellation of Sh22 billion Kimwarer dam put on hold until it concludes its investigations.

Yesterday, Senate Legal Affairs and Human Rights Committee begun receiving submissions following a petition by Elgeyo Marakwet residents.

The petition tabled in the House by Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen (pictured) asked lawmakers to “do everything within the law to ensure the report of the technical committee is not implemented, until such a time that the Senate will determine it was legally established.”

Committee chairperson Samson Cherargei (Nandi) said they expect the government to suspend implementation of the report.

Former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich and his Principal Secretary Kamau Thugge are some of the senior government officers arraigned in court over the dam project scandal.

Petitioners, Peter Barng'etuny and Titus Chemase, argue that it is curious that President Uhuru Kenyatta picked on Kimwarer and Arror dams for fraud investigation, while many other dams in the country had similar contractual problems. 

They told the committee that the cancellation would be a denial to Elgeyo Marakwet residents.