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.
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.
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.
Lunga Lunga MP Chiforomondo Mangale urged the committee to suspend deliberations on the Kigali campus until all former officials had appeared before MPs.
“The issues being mentioned here are weighty. Acquisition of land, fraudulent transfer of funds and loans amounting to over Sh80 million are not small matters,” he said.
Igembe Central MP Daniel Karitho warned against allowing public officials to evade accountability after leaving office.
“We cannot allow people to breach the law and then simply retire and go home,” he said.
Committee Vice-Chairperson Boyd Were backed the proposal, noting that JKUAT had itself acknowledged procurement irregularities while the Inspectorate of State Corporations had recommended recovery of Sh8.06 million allegedly transferred irregularly from the Kigali campus account.
He said MPs also wanted to establish whether the recommended recoveries had been implemented.
According to the Auditor-General, the university purchased two parcels of land in Kigali valued at more than Sh19.7 million after the then campus director signed sale agreements before receiving approval from the Ministry of Education.
The audit further questioned the absence of procurement plans, tender documents, valuation reports and evidence that funds for the acquisition had been budgeted.
It also found that the former campus director secured a loan facility from I&M Bank Rwanda without approval from the University Council, the Ministry of Education or the National Treasury.
Responding to the committee, Prof. Ngumi said the current administration inherited the problems and took disciplinary action immediately after uncovering the irregularities.
“When the management discovered what was happening in Kigali, the director was suspended pending investigations, taken through a disciplinary process and summarily dismissed. The matter was reported to EACC,” she told MPs.
She added that although JKUAT had acquired undeveloped land in Kigali, the university continued leasing premises for its campus, exposing it to costly legal disputes after the campus was closed.
Chief Finance Officer Mary Ngugi said the university had settled claims with one landlord before disagreements over foreign exchange rate adjustments resulted in litigation.
Chief Legal Officer Richard Wokabi Kariuki told the committee that one case involving landlord Furaha Eugene had since been settled after payment of the outstanding exchange rate differential, leading to the withdrawal of the suit.
However, he said another dispute involving landlord Martin Higiro remains before the Court of Appeal, with the university maintaining that all rent obligations had been fully settled.
The Auditor-General also questioned expenditure amounting to approximately Sh87.8 million related to the Kigali campus, including land purchases, rent, renovations, legal fees and the unauthorised loan, citing inadequate documentation on the university’s assets and expenditure.
In its response, JKUAT said it had addressed several of the historical issues by disposing of the Kigali properties in April 2026, recovering title deeds, removing the land from its asset register and transferring movable assets, including a vehicle, to the main campus.
The university also told MPs that several of the questionable transactions had been reported to investigative agencies while disciplinary action had been taken against those found culpable.
Committee chairperson Dick Maungu said Parliament would not conclude its examination of the matter until the former officials directly linked to the transactions appeared before the committee.
“There is an element of impunity by this person, the director. We may not close the matter unless we have heard him and the committee is able to scrutinise him,” Maungu ruled before directing that the former officials be summoned.