Contractors and suppliers for different development projects by the Machakos County government on Sunday complained that the county government has not being paying for their services.
The suppliers say they have not been paid even after having tendered and supplied the county government for the last three years,
Speaking at Machakos Golf Club, Barclay Mutinda, the chairman of that association formed by the contractors and suppliers said that the county government has been postponing their payment dates to an extent that some of the debts are about three years old.
"Some of us had taken loans from banks and other micro-finance creditors and we are expected to pay back, of which some of us have already had their properties auctioned due to delayed pay of credit," explained Mutinda.
Mutinda accused the Machakos county government of taking credit they do not deserve for development projects they did not pay for the expenses. He also said that the county government should not give any more tenders to any other suppliers and contractors before paying their debts.
"We will go to court to prevent Machakos county government from giving any more further tenders before paying their current debt to us, because there is no way we are going to watch them increase debts on top of others," added Mutinda.
He said that the contractors who had been hired from other counties were paid in time but those from within Machakos were not.
However, these came just a few weeks after Machakos county government denied the allegations in a press statement posted on the official Facebook page and signed by Elizabeth Nzioka Mutheu, CeC for Finance and Revenue Collection, Joshua Musili, CeC for Transport, Roads, Public Worksand Housing and Francis Maliti, CeC for Water, Irrigation and Sanitation.
They termed the allegations as false and malicious meant to depict Governor Mutua in a bad light.