Talanta project officials grilled over Sh10.8b cost jump

A parliamentary committee has questioned the rationale for the transfer of construction works of Talanta City Sports Stadium from Sports Kenya to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), and the allocation of an additional Sh10.8 billion without approval.

Also questioned was the adjustment of the initial cost by a whopping Sh10.8 billion without parliamentary approval. The MPs also flagged the repeated movement of money from the Consolidated Fund through the sports ministry before being transferred to the MoD.

The Public Investments Committee on Social Services, Administration, and Agriculture (PIC-SSAA) loudly wondered how the cost of constructing the stadium increased without proper explanation from the initial Sh35 billion to Sh45.8 billion.

The committee, chaired by Navakholo MP Emmanuel Wangwe, sought to know when the Sports Kenya Management Board, led by Director General Timothy Kilimo, took over the project and the process through which Sports Kenya was mandated to construct the stadium.

The MPs found it unacceptable that the MoD carried out the procurement of Talanta Stadium, yet this was supposed to have been done by Sports Kenya.

“We want all the documents for us to look at the contract between China Road and Bridge Corporation Kenya and the Defence Ministry on the procurement deal. We want the details of the contract signed. Why did the prices increase and what necessitated that difference? We also want to know the relationship between Sports Kenya and the Ministry of Defence,” Wangwe said.

Saboti MP Caleb Amisi, who is also the Vice Chairperson of the committee, said there are serious questions that require interrogation, even as he sought to know the law the MoD used to acquire the project and its financing when it was initiated by Sports Kenya.

Amisi proposed that the committee hold a joint sitting with the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for further interrogation of the issue, especially now that the accounts of the Defence Ministry are scrutinised by PAC.

“I feel for you because you must be in a very precarious situation. How does money come to you then all of a sudden it goes to the Ministry of Defence? Our financial system does not envisage that kind of money circulation. I do not know which law the Defence Ministry used to grab your project, procure and supervise,” said Amisi.

According to the auditor, the project financial statements reflect work in progress of about Sh12 billion that remains to be concluded. A balance of Sh2 billion transferred through the Sports Fund to the Ministry of Defence for construction of Talanta Sports City Stadium is deposited in the account.

But Kilimo told the committee that they had no major role in the entire process, only that Sh2 billion was passing through them from the Sports Fund, which they then transferred to the Ministry.

“We did not have a role in the procurement. We are not the procuring entity for Talanta. This function was transferred to the Ministry,” Kilimo told the committee.

Kilimo also said that the pronouncement made on the change of name to Raila Amollo Odinga International Sports Stadium from Talanta City has not been done because the project is still under construction.

Unacceptable takeover

Similarly, Ndhiwa MP Martin Owino termed the takeover by the Defence Ministry of projects initiated by Sports Kenya unacceptable and proposed that a forensic audit be done to establish how the procurement process was conducted.

He said: “This is actually unacceptable. I have never seen something like this before. You cannot just transfer money; there must be requisition and a paper trail following it for accountability purposes. I would propose that we carry out a forensic audit on this matter and then turn the interrogation into an inquiry. This is not easy, Kenyans are looking to us for the right answers.”

The auditor said that the tender for the proposed design, build and equip project of the Talanta stadium was awarded to China Road and Bridge Corporation Kenya at a contract sum of Sh45.8 billion. An agreement was then signed to transfer procuring responsibility and supervision of the construction of the stadium from Sports Kenya to the Defence Ministry.

However, the National Treasury had approved project funding of Sh35 billion which was to be drawn from the Sports and Arts Social Development Fund over a six-year payment plan against a contract amount of Sh45.8 billion, resulting in an unsupported price variation of Sh10.8 billion.

Other than the inflated cost of the 60,000-seater, expected to be Kenya’s biggest and most modern football stadium, the audit raises further doubts, noting that the much-needed clearance from the Attorney-General before the award of the contract may not have been sought, or that he may not have been involved at all.

“Clearance from the Attorney General for the award of the contract was not provided in the audit,” the audit report states.

The audit has also shown that the contractor signed a consent agreeing to the transfer of the duty and obligation of making subsequent payments to the trustee on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

The report also stated that the project implementation report as at June 1, 2025 indicated that the project was at 44.5 per cent completion, with 15 months to the expected contract completion date, while cumulative payments to the contractor amounted to Sh2 billion, or only 4.5 per cent, as at June last year.

However, the contract indicated that late payments would attract interest at 3 per cent above the Central Bank average base lending rate prevailing on the first day the payment becomes overdue, in accordance with Article 3.5 of the contract agreement, resulting in additional avoidable project expenditure.

The audit has also shown that there was no evidence that the works were budgeted for and included in the approved procurement plan, contrary to Section 53(2) of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015.