WRC contractors cry foul over delayed payments

Two months after the successful World Rally Championship Safari Rally in Naivasha, Nakuru County, local contractors involved in the event have yet to receive their payment.

The most affected are tens of young people who were hired as marshals, cleaners, and garbage collectors along the rally routes.

This came as the youths issued a three-day notice to the Ministry of Youths and Sports and the rally organisers to pay their dues, or they would take to the streets.

According to one of the youth leaders, Simon Wakaba, they had been promised that they would get their dues three days after the global event ended.

He, however, noted that 44 days down the line, local contractors had not been paid, whereas their counterparts from Nairobi were paid soon after the event.

“We delivered our part during the rally, but someone has refused to pay us, and we are asking the PS for Sports to intervene; failure to which we will camp in his office,” he said.

Speaking in Naivasha, another youth, Robert Kamau, accused a senior officer from Nakuru County of their woes after presenting another list of workers to the rally organisers.

“Some people claim that we are ghost workers, yet we accessed the Service Park, which is a security area, every day, and senior WRC officers can attest to this,” he said.

On his part, Calvin Ombassa recounted how they worked in harsh conditions without any protective gear, forcing some to be admitted to hospitals after the event.

He said that this was the fifth year they had worked in the Service Park and had been paid on time, but things had changed this time round.

“We worked without any meals or protective gear despite the heavy rains and dust, and after the rally, many developed complications only to be denied our dues,” he said.

Another worker who missed out, Simon Peshi, wondered what criteria were used to pay marshals in Nairobi and to lock out those in Naivasha.

“We have been discriminated against in terms of payment, yet we did our part and are undergoing untold suffering,” said another youth, Florence Waithera.

Efforts to get a comment from the Sports Principal Secretary, Elijah Mwangi, were fruitless as calls and text messages to his mobile phone went unanswered.

However, a senior officer from the Ministry who declined to be named confirmed that they were aware of the impasse and that the accounts department was addressing it.

“There are concerns that some names were added in the main list, and an audit is going on before the real workers are paid,” said the officer.