BY CATHERINE MUCHIRI THE Parliamentary Public Accounts committee has uncovered massive rot in local authorities, with many said to be struggling to provide services.
Chairperson of the committee Brian Dube gave a grim picture of the performance of local authorities in an interview with NewsDay.
The subcommittee of the Public Accounts Committee visited a number of local authorities across the country last week.
“The common features across the urban councils are that they are financially struggling and as a result unable to effectively manage solid waste. Local Authorities are failing to administer properly engineered landfills, to separate waste at source and to collect solid waste regularly,” Dube said.
“The other challenge is procurement of equipment as suppliers demand forex and those who accept the local currency usually inflate prices, and at times fail to deliver equipment citing non availability of forex on the market.
“Councils also suffer as a result of delays in the procurement processes, which is not consistent with the hyperinflationary environment. The non-availability of fuel sold in local currency at service stations is seriously affecting service delivery, especially solid waste management, which requires frequent and regular picking of solid waste.”
