NAIROBI,Kenya Aug 5 – Former senior officials of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) have been summoned by the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education (PIC-G&E) to explain a series of controversial transactions linked to the university’s former Kigali campus.

📻 Breaking It Down

The concerns include questionable land purchases, an unauthorised loan and alleged irregular transfer of funds.

The committee, chaired by Luanda MP Dick Maungu, issued the summons on Tuesday after expressing dissatisfaction with explanations provided by the university’s current management while examining the Auditor-General’s report for the financial year ending June 30, 2025.

Lawmakers said the officials who made the decisions under scrutiny must personally account for their actions, arguing that the current administration could not be held responsible for transactions undertaken years before they assumed office.

📌 What You Need to Know

Appearing before the committee were Vice-Chancellor Prof. Victoria Wambui Ngumi, Deputy Vice-Chancellors Prof. Robert Kinyua, Prof. Bernard Ikua and Prof. Jackson Kwanza, Chief Finance Officer Mary Ngugi, Chief Legal Officer Richard Wokabi Kariuki and other senior university officials.

The committee is investigating a string of audit queries surrounding the university’s former Rwanda campus, including the purchase of land without the required approvals, procurement of a loan estimated at more than Sh80 million without authorisation, alleged fraudulent transfer of university funds, legal disputes with landlords following the campus closure and failure to account for assets linked to the Kigali operations.

MPs directed that former Vice-Chancellor Prof. Mabel Imbuga, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Finance) Prof. Bernard Otoki, former Head of Finance and former Kigali Campus Director Anthony Luvanda appear before the committee, saying their testimony was critical to establishing accountability.

“There are a lot of illegalities as pertains to the procedures, acquisition and use,” Central Imenti MP Moses Kirima told the committee, insisting Parliament could not conclude its inquiry without hearing from the officials directly involved.

Kilome MP Thaddeus Nzambia questioned how the former Kigali campus director appeared to have undertaken major financial commitments without the approval of the University Council or the Ministry of Education.

“We need to know who this director was and where he is so that he can shed some light,” Nzambia said, adding that it would be unfair to require the current management to answer for historical decisions.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya