Nancy Gathungu: Claims of delayed payments in counties unfounded

Auditor General Nancy Gathungu. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

Auditor General Nancy Gathungu has criticised county governments for fiscal indiscipline, attributing the backlog of pending bills to poor financial management rather than delayed disbursements.

Appearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, September 3, Gathungu dismissed claims that pending bills stem from delays in fund disbursement.

"When counties receive their full disbursements in a subsequent financial year, they should be able to settle these bills. Therefore, the claims that pending bills are due to delayed disbursements are unfounded," she said.

Gathungu explained that if the Controller of Budget has approved a budget and has completed the necessary processes, there should be no delay in payment.

She questioned the practice of partial payments when full payments have been authorised.

"If the Controller of Budget has authorised full payment and they proceed with partial payment, how do they justify requesting a partial payment?" she questioned.

She further noted that while some pending bills result from budget cuts in the fourth quarter, these are minimal compared to the broader issue of mismanagement in county and national government entities.