The Kenya Medical Training College – Kuria Campus is in the spotlight over unpaid fees amounting to Sh. 10.4 million.
However, it has been revealed that students have paid a huge part of the amount in cash but the amount is yet to reflect in the institution’s financial records.
The Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu was rightly concerned about the recoverability of fees amounting to Sh. 7.1 million which students paid in cash at the campus. The amount made up a huge fraction of the Sh. 10.4 million fees balances. The auditor general’s concerns were clear following the tabling of her report on the institution’s finances for the year ending on the 30th of June 2019.
Sh. 8.2 million had also been recorded in cashbooks but had not been deposited in the institution’s bank accounts. This procedure is an infringement of the financial regulations set in place for KMTCs.
“The accuracy of cash and cash equivalents balance of Sh. 1,559,738,289 indicated in the statement of financial position as at 30th of June 2019 could not be ascertained,” said the auditor-general.
KMTC officials also failed to present cheques worth Sh. 2.7 million auditings. Sh. 2.35 million had also been received in the bank accounts of the institutions but was not recorded in the cashbook.
The auditor general also expressed his worry over the payment of the Sh. 46.8 million fees balances that had not been paid for over a year.
Across the country, KMTC students had fees balances of up to Sh. 380 million as of the 30th of June 2019.
The report also reveals that KMTC is engaged in a conflict with the University of Nairobi over 96 rooms that the university’s medical students occupied at a cost of Sh. 80 per day.
Rent arrears accumulated to Sh. 73.8 million as of June 2019. The auditor general questioned the KMTC officials on why they had not provided the lease agreement to her office for review.
“Even though the KMTC management has revealed that they have issued demand letters to the University for Clearance of the outstanding money owed together with a vacation notice to enable the college student to occupy the hostels, the rent has continued to accumulate for more than 20 years now,” read the audit report.
Another concerning issue is that the college has valued and disclosed some parcels of land that are occupied by 45 campuses in the country.
Title deeds of eighteen pieces of land amounting to a total acreage of 241.731 acres that is valued at Sh. 333 million were also not provided for audit.
“The accuracy, completeness and ownership of land valued at Sh. 333 million as of the 30th of June 2019 could not be confirmed,” said Gathungu.
Gathungu wondered why the college had not revalued its land after having done the same in the year 2005.
“Under these circumstances, I am not able to confirm the existence of effective internal controls on the land,” added Gathungu.
The accuracy of the KMTC’s statements of the performance of the institutions for the year was also an issue of concern due to a variance of Sh. 554,123,706 in income and expense vote heads.