A member of county assembly from Nyamira County has fiercely defended himself from graft claims regarding Sh2.5 million that was allegedly disbursed to his ward to help the needy and vulnerable children.
Speaking on Monday at his offices in Gesima, Ken Atuti said the propaganda that he might have embezzled the funds meant for supporting education is baseless.
He threatened to sue his detractors of trying to implicate him, in a bid to gain political mileage ahead of 2017 polls.
“I am not corrupt and I never condone corruption in my administration. I am ready to face my detractors in court and if they fail to take the matter, I will take a personal responsibility and sue them for defamation,” he said.
According to him, part of Sh2.5 million was used to refurbish two dispensaries from the region, whose construction have stalled since 2012.
“It is true that I didn’t use the entire cash in education, but I can produce documents that we completed two dispensaries; one at Nyaiguta and another one at Mosobeti, the projects were abandoned by former leaders,” he said.
However, his claims were refuted by former area councilor Julius Nyachieo, who accused Atuti of hiding in the name of refurbishing hospitals in a bid to swindle money from the public coffers.
“The money from the county was meant for education and I wonder whom he consulted before diverting it to other projects. That is by itself an evidence of grand corruption,” he said.