Kenya’s water lifeline has turned into a river of scandal. At the center of it all is Willis Ombai, the man running the Water Sector Trust Fund (WaterFund) — now infamously dubbed “Mr. 10 Percent.”
Whispers from the corridors of power claim Ombai slipped a Sh10 million bribe to Lands CS Alice Wahome just to secure his seat. A seat already drowning in corruption.
Ombai’s reign has long been dogged by tales of sleaze. At WaterFund, nothing moves without his cut. Contractors allegedly cough up 10 percent before cash is released. Proxy companies tied to the boss scoop tenders. And millions meant for thirsty Kenyans vanish into thin air.
Audit reports tell the same dirty story: over Sh37 million paid out irregularly. Another Sh24 million wired to a water company already under investigation. Projects stall, taps stay dry, but the money? It flows like champagne in Nairobi’s high-end clubs.
Inside WaterFund, fear rules. Staff whisper that Ombai has gagged workers with threats. “Talk to the media and you’re finished,” one insider confided.
But Ombai insists he’s no thief — he’s a victim. He claims powerful figures in President Ruto’s government are bleeding him dry, using blackmail and extortion to push him out. “I’m being targeted because they want the Fund’s money,” he says.
The EACC is circling. Parliament is asking why WaterFund even exists if it only fattens pockets while villages drink from polluted rivers. Kenyans are furious, branding Ombai the face of yet another mega-graft scandal.
Now the man called “Mr. 10 Percent” is fighting for his political life. But the country is left asking: is he really the victim of a political shakedown — or the architect of one of Kenya’s dirtiest water scandals yet?
For now, one truth flows clear: while Ombai fights to save his seat, millions of Kenyans are still left high and dry.
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