State cautions against multiple bids without capacity to deliver
By Patrick Amimo
The Government has issued a stern warning to contractors who overextend themselves by taking on more public projects than they can effectively deliver.
Mr. Eliud Owalo, the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Delivery and Government Efficiency cited inefficiency and the risk of stalling critical development programs and cautioned contractors against bidding multiple government projects without the technical capacity to execute them.
“We are witnessing a worrying trend where some contractors are biting off more than they can chew. They aggressively pursue numerous tenders, quote unrealistically low prices to win bids, and ultimately struggle to deliver,” Mr. Owalo said.
He emphasized that such practices compromise service delivery and delay government-funded initiatives.
“We will not allow public resources to be tied up in non-performing contracts. Any contractor who consistently under delivers due to overstretching their capacity will be recommended for blacklisting,” he said.
The warning signals a renewed government commitment to efficiency and accountability in project implementation, as it seeks to streamline service delivery and ensure value for taxpayer money.
Mr. Owalo spoke during a week-long project inspection and verification drive in Kisii and Nyamira Counties to ensure timely completion and delivery of national development projects.
The exercise brought together officers from the Government Delivery Unit (GDU), senior engineers, county administrators, and security officials to evaluate the actual progress of government-funded projects on the ground.
The inspection commenced in Kisii County, where key infrastructure and service delivery projects were reviewed. These included the Kisii bypass Phase II, currently 3 per cent complete aimed at enhancing inter-county connectivity between Kisii and Nyamira counties at Kegati-Omogonchoro. The Sh847-million project will facilitate trade by providing easy access to social amenities.
He also inspected the Nyanchwa Affordable Housing project which comprises 189 units being constructed at the cost of Sh475 million and the Nyaribari Masaba Affordable Housing Project which will host 240 units at a cost of Sh723 million. The project is 13 per cent complete.
The Deputy Chief of Staff also visited the Kiamokama Cold Storage Facility and the nearly completed Nyacheki-Riokabeni-Nyamache Box Culvert which will ease access to institutions such as Nyamache Level 4 Hospital.
Others included inspection of the 75-kilometer Bomachage Chache Road being implemented by KeRRA at a cost of Sh3.5 billion. Construction is 77.5 per cent complete.
The 9.7-kilometer Nyasembe-Etago-Kenyenya Road was upgraded to bitumen standards at the cost of Sh759 million and is fully complete, while the 15-kilometer Riosiri-Ikoba and Gotichaki Loop Roads that cost Sh740.2 million is 65 per cent complete.
Speaking in Kisii County, Owalo emphasized the need for transparency amidst conflicting information regarding the status of projects as stated by some contractors and actual progress on the ground. The Deputy Chief of Staff insisted that what is in official records must be consistent with the physical evidence at the project sites.