Local government minister Rusoke to visit Kole over road fund abuse

Kole | Rusoke Victoria, the State Minister for Local Government, is scheduled to visit Kole District on Monday, February 24, 2025. Her visit is to address the district roads committee’s ongoing crisis and other service delivery issues.

The visit is in response to complaints made by Kole North MP, Dr. Samuel Opio Acuti, and Kole South MP, Ocen Peter, about dysfunction within the district roads committee.

Hundreds of Kole district residents have signed petitions against the district leaders in support of the two MPs.

The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), Soita Wamburu, and the Acting District Engineer, Emmanuel Okello, are said to have refused to attend committee meetings, crippling the committee’s operations and impeding progress on road projects.

In an interview with tndNews on February 19, Dr. Samuel Opio Acuti confirmed the Minister’s visit, saying she will address concerns about the use of one billion shillings (shs1b) sent by the central government through the road fund.

The funds were allocated to improve the district’s road infrastructure, but their use has been a source of contention among local leaders and stakeholders.

The demand stems from the CAO’s repeated failure to attend District Roads Committee meetings, including one scheduled for February 14, 2025, chaired by Dr. Opio. The Acting District Engineer also did not attend, further stalling critical discussions about the accountability of shs1 billion allocated for road works in the fiscal year 2023/24.

As far as tndNews is aware, the purpose of the February 14 meeting was also to talk about the current fiscal year’s plans.

Dr. Opio, who chairs the Kole District Roads Committee, expressed his dissatisfaction with the CAO’s absence last week, saying, “I sent an invitation to the CAO and the District Engineer, but they did not attend or send apologies or representatives. We have roads meant for FY 22/23 and FY 23/24 that are yet to be completed, yet we are approaching the end of the third quarter.”

He revealed that he has received petitions from over 1,000 residents regarding four key roads—Ngetta-Alito, Barpii-Anekapiri, Aboke Ginnery-Opeta, and Alyat-Aweingwec-Ocokcan—which remain impassable despite available funds.

“We are wondering if the money is still there or has been diverted,” Dr. Opio added

Additionally, the Minister is expected to tackle service delivery challenges highlighted during her previous visit to Kole last year. Key issues include the mismanagement of local revenue and discrepancies in the distribution of local service tax.

Several lower local governments have complained of either not receiving their entitled funds or receiving significantly less than expected, which has hampered service delivery at the grassroots level.

The meeting is scheduled to commence at 9:00 a.m. at the Kole district headquarters. Members of Parliament, the Resident District Commissioner (RDC), the LC5 Chairperson, the CAO, heads of departments, LC3 Chairpersons, Mayors, Sub-county Chiefs, and district health facility directors will all be in attendance.

Stakeholders, and MP Dr. Opio in particular, are optimistic that the Minister’s intervention will address the ongoing service delivery issues and break the deadlock in the roads committee, opening the door for better development and governance in Kole District.