As contractors press the Siaya County Government with a two-week ultimatum, they point to a growing trail of stalled, slowed, or disbanded projects across the county — casualties, they say, of persistent non-payment.
Among the projects cited is the County Aggregation and Industrial Park at Got Akara, which contractors say was effectively abandoned midstream after payments failed to materialise. While the county has framed the project’s suspension as a technical redesign and re-tendering process, contractors on the ground argue that non-payment played a central role in the disbandment of works and demobilisation of local firms.
The Got Akara case has become emblematic of a wider pattern: projects launched with fanfare, local contractors engaged, work commenced — and then activity grinds to a halt as pending bills pile up.
During the presser that culminated in the two-week ultimatum, contractors openly questioned how payment decisions are made once funds are released.
One contractor complained that even when money is allocated for clearing pending bills, local firms receive only a fraction:
“When KES 300 million is allocated for payment of contractors, we locals get KES 10 million while the rest is given to the big boys from Nairobi and Kisumu. Does that money circulate in Siaya or does it go out to benefit wherever those people take it?”
Another contractor warned that patience had run out, accusing the county leadership of selective payments:
“It will not be business as usual. We have obligations we are unable to meet while the governor pays people in his good books from outside Siaya.”
The contractors argue that such practices undermine the spirit of devolution, which was designed not only to deliver services but to stimulate local enterprise and retain public funds within county economies.
Despite repeated engagements with county officials, contractors say they have received no clear payment schedule or written commitment. They insist the two-week ultimatum remains in force, after which they may halt works, pursue legal action, or escalate protests.
For many, the issue is no longer just unpaid invoices but economic survival — with workers unpaid, loans in arrears, and suppliers threatening litigation.
As the deadline approaches, the pressure is squarely on the Siaya County Government to demonstrate that development in Siaya is not built on unpaid labour — and that contractors who build the county are not treated as expendable.
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