Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja faced tough questions on Monday after it emerged that over half of all the water produced in Nairobi County is lost before reaching residents.
The shocking revelation came during a Senate County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee session, where senators demanded answers over the loss of 51% of water valued at a staggering Ksh8.6 billion.
Committee Chairperson Godfrey Osotsi bluntly asked the governor how such a significant loss could be explained to the people of Nairobi who continue to pay water bills.
“Governor, the auditors say 51% of the water produced — worth Sh8.6 billion — has vanished. How do you expect us to explain this to the residents who pay rates and expect service delivery?” Osotsi questioned.
In response, Governor Sakaja blamed the previous county administration for neglecting the water infrastructure, saying his government inherited a broken system with old, damaged pipes that had not been maintained for years.
He noted that due to this, his administration has had to make urgent budget allocations to fix the problem.
“We inherited outdated piping and postponed capital development. That’s why we’ve set aside Ksh9.2 billion in the 2024/2025 financial year for fixing meters, detecting leaks, and replacing old pipelines. We also have ongoing projects with AFD and FD support,” Sakaja explained.
But water loss wasn’t the only issue troubling the county. Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna raised concern over Ksh11 billion in unpaid water bills, some of which have remained unsettled for more than 480 days.
“There’s Sh11 billion in unpaid bills sitting for over a year. Sending demand letters isn’t enough. What concrete plan does the county have to recover this money?” Sifuna pressed.
Governor Sakaja responded by saying his government had already taken action to recover the debts. He mentioned the launch of two new revenue zones and the introduction of a Geographic Information System (GIS) billing platform earlier in the year to help track and bill water usage more accurately.
He added that all accounts owing more than Ksh1 million were now under legal review, and nearly 2,000 active but previously unbilled accounts had been invoiced.
Another major concern was how the county spends its revenue. The Senate pointed out that 65% of Nairobi’s earnings were being used to pay salaries, almost double the allowed limit of 35%.
To address this, Sakaja explained that the county had already implemented cost-cutting measures. These include freezing hiring for non-essential positions and moving services closer to the people to reduce staff overtime.
He also said that his administration had submitted a cost-recovery tariff proposal to the Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB), which aims to bring the wage bill down to 45% within a year.
The senators called for more accountability and quicker action, urging Governor Sakaja’s team to show real progress in solving these long-standing issues.
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