Machakos County Responds to Sammy Kioko’s Payment Claims
The Machakos County Government has addressed claims made by comedian and content creator Sammy Kioko over delayed payments for a county uniform supply tender.
During a press briefing on Monday, Joseph Mathuki, head of procurement, speaking on behalf of the Machakos County Government, clarified the procurement details, saying the claims circulating on social media were “misleading.”
County Clarifies Position
“It’s very simple to give clarity on issues that have been circulating on social media on certain procurement that involved purchasing uniforms for our staff,” Mathuki said.
He explained that the county follows established legal procedures in procurement and that the tender in question had been processed under a registered business entity that does not include Kioko as a director.
“What guides us to know who are the proprietors of a business basically is the CR12, and Kioko is not one of the directors of that particular company,” Mathuki alleged.
According to him, the delay in payment was due to incomplete delivery of goods during the initial phase of the contract.
“We do accept that there was a procurement meant to that effect. The payment was delayed not because of anything else but because the deliveries made were halfway, and there’s no way the county government would have processed payments with half delivery,” he claimed.
Mathuki added that the remaining deliveries were made in the 2023/2024 financial year, and the payment process had since resumed.
“The payment has been going on and will be effected,” he said, emphasizing that Kioko had “no legal authority” to speak on behalf of the company and warning against individuals “messing the name of the county and that of Her Excellency the Governor.”
Sammy Kioko’s Response
Following the press statement, Sammy Kioko took to social media to respond, posting a video of the briefing on his Instagram account with a detailed caption.
“As earlier stated, I absolutely have no business tarnishing the governor’s name,” Kioko wrote. “The county has now confirmed a tender was awarded and performed fully, contrary to an initial statement that there is no documentation regarding any such tender.”
He clarified that the tender was executed under a registered company, and that he was involved in financing the project jointly with his sister.
“We had an agreement with my sister on how to fund the project, just like how any other LPO would be financed. We delivered work as per the award and invoiced. The invoice is in the name that was awarded the tender. If Kioko is the problem then pay the company!” he added.
Kioko concluded his statement by urging the county to resolve the issue without politicizing it, writing, “Tuache siasa, just pay and save a life.”
How It All Started
The dispute began in late October 2025, when Sammy Kioko took to social media claiming that the Machakos County Government had failed to pay him for uniforms his company allegedly supplied to county staff.
In a video that quickly went viral, Kioko expressed frustration, saying the delayed payment had put him under financial strain.
His revelations sparked widespread discussion online, with many Kenyans questioning the integrity of county procurement systems and the challenges faced by small business owners working with government entities.
Kioko alleged that despite completing the work and submitting invoices, the county had failed to fulfill its financial obligations. He claimed to have personally financed part of the project alongside his sister, under what he described as a legitimate Local Purchase Order (LPO).
“We delivered what was required and invoiced accordingly. It’s been months of waiting, yet nothing has been done,” Kioko said in his earlier post.
The viral nature of his statements prompted intense public scrutiny, eventually forcing the Machakos County Government to respond publicly.
