A National Assembly committee on July 2, 2025, heard how a former Vice-Chancellor paid himself Ksh12.49 million as gratuity while still in office.  

The former VC is said to have paid himself two days before he left office, yet he had not cleared with the institution, which is contrary to the law, as gratuity is supposed to be paid on expiry of the contract. 

The MPs also heard how former Karatina University VC Mucai Muchiri received transport allowances amounting to Ksh1.8 million despite having been given an official vehicle by the university. 

The revelations came during the consideration of the Auditor General Nancy Gathungu report, which showed that the university processed and made payments of gratuity to the VC totalling to Ksh12.49 million on June 2, 2023, before the expiry of his contract and a further Ksh1.8 million as car allowance yet he had been provided with an official vehicle by the institution. 

“ln the circumstances, value for money on the car allowance of Ksh1,872,000 and the gratuity amount of Ksh12,490,347 for the year ended June 30, 2023, could not be confirmed,” the report reads. 

Muchiri, who had appeared alongside Karatina University top officials to respond to the audit queries, confirmed to the MPs that he paid himself the gratuity, and he is yet to clear with the school. 

When told to confirm the same, he responded “Yes, I paid myself”, and when asked whether he had cleared the school, he responded that he was yet to do so. 

This even as he defended himself, saying that the terms of conditions of his contract provided that he be given an official car and in its absence, he be facilitated to move from his home to his workstation. 

Karatina University VC Linus Muthuri also confirmed that up to date, Muchiri has never been cleared from the institution despite getting all his dues while on the transport allowances. He confirmed that the former VC benefited from the payments despite having an official car to use. 

His attempt to exonerate the former VC from any wrongdoing, on the grounds that he was only paid the transport allowances on days he did not use the university transport, did not go well with MPs who accused him of entertaining fraud at the institution. 

Muthuri had told the MPs that Muchai was only to refund the institution Ksh270,000 out of the Ksh1.8 million because the balance was justifiably earned on the days he did not use the official vehicle from the school. 

According to him, his contract allows him to be given allowances on the days he does not use his vehicle to move from the school to his home. 

The MPs who sit in the Public Investment Committee on Education and Governance, chaired by Bumula MP Wamboka Wanami, termed the whole saga as fraud 

The committee directed that the amount be recovered within a month, and only after official clearance is obtained, before the gratuity is paid in accordance with the law.  

“As we speak even now it is clear that this has never cleared from the intuition making the payment illegal… this committee directs that the university recovers the said money, institutes a clearance check in accordance with the HR policies and sets up a committee to determine what is payable to him,” Wamboka said, adding that the more the VC continues to hold on to the university the more he will be committing an illegality.  

“I dare say that whatever is happening is fraud, it is an illegality, and the former Vice Chancellor should refund the money to the university immediately,” he added. 

On the allowances that he benefited from, the committee directed that the university receive the entire Ksh1.8 million from the former Vice Chancellor, while on the current VC, the MPs declared him incompetent for trying to clear his predecessor through the back door. 

“The committee directs that within six months, the university receive the Ksh1.8 million from the former VC. On the current VC, we fine you for abetting the law knowingly by trying to clear the former VC,” the committee chair said. 

Apart from Karatina University, the committee, which also met several university and college heads, warned the institutions against ignoring audit timelines and flouting financial regulations. 

They expressed concerns over the increasing trend of failure by institution heads to submit timely and accurate audit reports, resulting in repeated audit issues rolling over to subsequent financial years. 

They also cautioned institutions against embarking on new development projects without completing existing ones.

This warning comes in light of multiple stalled projects that have drained public resources without delivering results. 

“This practice is not just unacceptable — it’s illegal. We are determined to enforce adherence to established procedures and instil a culture of accountability through stringent measures. Principals and Vice Chancellors will be held personally accountable for their shortcomings,” Wamboka said.