Nakuru County Sh2.1 billion road deal with NYS on the spot
Rift Valley
By
Antony Gitonga
| Dec 06, 2025
A section of Nakuru residents have protested against a Sh2.1 billion agreement between the county government and the National Youth Service to maintain feeder roads, terming it illegal.
They have said they will go to court to stop the pact where the county has tasked NYS with full responsibility for maintaining roads under the Imarisha Barabara programme over the next year.
Nakuru East MCA Stanley Karanja said the MOU was null and void as it was not ratified by the County Assembly as required by law.
He added that allocating Sh2.1 billion for the maintenance of internal roads while placing the NYS in charge effectively shielded the funds from assembly scrutiny.
Karanja noted that despite the county receiving billions of shillings for road maintenance over the past three years, only 1.7km of roads had been completed.
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He claimed the current arrangement risked becoming an avenue for misappropriation of public funds owing to the past corruption cases which plagued NYS before.
“The agreement requires the county to pay 50 per cent of the contract value before operations begin, despite its failure to settle pending bills owed to existing contractors,” he said.
Karanja warned that the MOU, if implemented, would lock out local youth, women, and persons with disabilities from tender opportunities as guaranteed under public procurement laws.
According to Edward Maina, the county had failed to subject the MOU to mandatory public participation, denying residents the opportunity to approve the process.
Maina added that under the agreement, MCAs from all 55 wards would not be permitted to oversee the funds allocated to the projects, which he argued was contrary to the law.
“I will lead a team to file a case in court to stop the implementation of the MOU until the governor follows due process and ensures that public funds are properly utilized,” he said.
Former Lakeview Ward MCA Simon Wanango criticized the current MCAs for failing to provide adequate oversight of the executive, arguing that this has put public funds at risk.
He said Governor Susan Kihika failed to seek assembly approval, adding that they would proceed to court to stop the implementation of the agreement.
Eunice Mureithi argued that the MOU denied local firms the chance to benefit from county projects, which would create job opportunities and circulate money within the community.
She added that the agreement undermined gains made under devolved governance, warning that such actions threatened to weaken devolution.