By Team
Drama unfolded at the County Government of Kisumu offices on Monday after an advocate moved to execute a court decree over unpaid certificate due to a contractor.
A Kisumu-based advocate Mr. Okungu stormed the county offices accompanied by two police officers to execute the decree by arresting and committing the county’s chief financial officer (CFO) to a civil jail.
Panic gripped the ever-busy CFO office and the Treasury Department as business was paralyzed at the county headquarters with a section of staff taking off to avoid arrest.
The advocate’s client was seeking Sh 8M, including interest for the court decree for the payment of the certificate to the contract he undertook.
However, to avert the arrest of the CFO, the county government administration entered into an arrangement with the advocate to pay part payment as it sought other finances to settle the balance.
Already, the Kisumu County Government is yet to pay Sh 2.3b to decree holders in the form of contractors’ certificates, advocates fees, and service providers.
The court gave 40 decree holders authority to execute the order between September to November.
During the fiscal year, Kisumu County received a total of KES. 10,142,864,470 in revenue, comprising Own Source Revenue, Grants, and sharable revenue, representing 84% of the revenue target set against budget revised estimates of KES. 12,045,283,582.
The panic has further been heightened by the resignation of the legal advisor and immediate former acting county Attorney Mr. Ouma Njoga.
Sources intimated to Western Insight Media claimed that Mr. Njoga raised the issue of court decrees but the legal advice was allegedly ignored.
Njoga subsequently resigned and when we sought his comment he said ‘I am bound by an oath of secrecy. What do you want to write in the newspaper,”.
Interestingly, the Kisumu Public Service Board recently appointed a new county attorney who was vetted by the assembly and is yet to be sworn in because Governor Prof Anyang Nyong’o has been away from the workstation.
But the County Secretary Mr. Hesborn Hongo when contacted for comments referred us to the county Attorney for comment.
“We are waiting for the new county attorney to be sworn in and he is the best person to comment on the matter as that is his department,’ he said.
when the Kisumu court released a list of pending decrees up for execution named the various entities owed by the county government including suppliers, contractors legal firms, and traders whose businesses were demolished among others.
A once popular fish-eating point along the Lake Victoria shores whose property was demolished got a court decree for Sh 75M. At the same time, a consultant firm received a similar amount against the County Government of Kisumu and the Kisumu City Board for unfilled contract obligation.
A prominent Kisumu lawyer was allowed to undertake decree enforcement for Sh 115,000,000.
A prominent Kisumu-based law firm is seeking Sh 475,000,000 for advocate and client bills of cost.
