Mombasa Technical University is currently under investigations for making purchases of ridiculously overpriced television sets.
This was after the audit report by Auditor General Edward Ouko tabled in parliament on Wednesday, February 13 revealed that the institution had spent Ksh4.5 million to buy five television sets.
Majority Leader Aden Duale, who tabled the report, informed the members of the House that the electronic devices were procured through requests for quotations, which is contrary to the requirements of the Public Procurement and Disposal Act, 2005.
While trying to cover the possibilities that the purchase was insensible, the university insisted that the TV sets were the recently introduced Smart TVs in the market.
Review of the report also revealed that though the order was for 70-inch TVs, 65-inch TVs were delivered and a total of Ksh 4,533,448 paid for them.
That meant that each Tv set’s cost was sh 910,689.
In reality, the average cost of a 65 inch Tv set in Kenya is sh 150,000, meaning that the total cost of all the Tv sets the institution bought should have been sh 750,000.
Part of the report reads, “A review of the matter in the current year indicates that the matter is still pending in court.”
Mombasa Technical University is also on the spot for spending another sh 294 million on personal emoluments.
“The funds could have been allocated to other deserving areas that would improve delivery of goods and service to the University. This may also be an indication of poor planning and the management may need to rethink on its budget-making process in view of focusing on more priority areas.”
This is not the first time such a case is handled, there are many other cases where public institutions exaggerates the cost of purchased items. For instance, an audit report showed that Bungoma County had spent sh 1 million for ten wheelbarrows in 2015.