mzalendo :: Eye On Kenyan Parliament

The National Taxpayers Association has conducted it’s first audit of constituency funds in Machakos and Kathiani constituencies and has found that close to Kshs 19 million was lost to “ghost projects” under the watch of the previous MPs David Mwanzia and Peter Kaindi, both of whom did not make it back to the Tenth Parliament.

Lets hope the National Taxpayers Association can be similarly transparent about their own work and update their website / publish the full reports online.

The CDF Project has been doing some great work around following up on the implementation of CDF projects and sharing the information they collect with a wider audience. So far they have worked only in Nairobi, with plans to expand elsewhere in the country. It’s a difficult job that they are doing - government and CDF officials have been generally unresponsive - but they have still been able to collect some good information. With their permission, we will be sharing the work they have done with you on Mzalendo. We hope that they are able to sustain their work so that by 2012 we can have an issue based record on which to assess the performance of MPs. As usual we encourage you to share your comments and feedback on how your MP is performing in the comments section.

CDF Report Langata: MP Raila Odinga

Amounts allocated:
- 2003/04 Kshs 6,000,000
- 2004/05 Kshs 22,218,788
- 2005/06 Kshs 28,735,319
- 2006/07 Kshs 39,807,498
- 2007/08 Kshs 40,053,371

Overview of project implementation: The Langata CDFC did not do a good job engaging the public in project planning and implementation. As a result, we could find very little local knowledge of project, or any project documentation. The quality of work in some projects like the Kongoni Primary School, Madaraka Primary School and the link road between South C and Mombasa road was poor.

Assistance received from local CDF committee: The journey to Langata began in early June 2008, when the contact person, Mr. Opieta arranged a meeting to be briefed on the CDF Social Audit Handbook. After the discussion, he referred us to Mr. Kehta, the CDF committee secretary. Mr. Kehta requested that we submit a letter stating our objectives. We did so in early July, and soon received a response referring us to the project coordinator at the Langata CDF offices, located at the Langata DO’s office. However, after several attempts to schedule a meeting, we received no response, and so began our project visits unassisted.

Project Reports: Click here for details on the following projects -
o Madaraka Primary School
o Link-road between South C and Mombasa Road
o Kongoni Primary School - Re-carpeting of Classrooms
o Kongoni Primary School - The Repair of a Parking Bay
o Langata High School
o Security Light Mast at Laini Saba
o Upgrading of the Laini Saba Sports Ground

More resources about the Langata CDF:

- Historical information, click here.

The Constituency Development Fund (CDF) has been in the news for the last couple of days.

First, there are reports of politicians meddling with the process of appointing the new head of the Fund.

Second, there is controversy about the poverty index that determines how much is distributed to each constituency.

Finally, there is the recent auditor general report revealing rampant abuse of CDF funds, with Saboti constituency topping the list of offenders (under the previous Parliament). You can read more about the mysterious death of the former Saboti CDF manager here.

This is one area where we would like to encourage Mzalendo users to keep their eyes on and report on what is going on in their constituency as far as CDF use / misuse. It is not always easy to get the information, but nothing beats hearing stories from the ground - how is your MP using CDF funds in your constituency?