Anxiety has gripped top officials at county and national governments even before a special unit formed to audit their lifestyles settles down.
Yesterday, another governor would have been the second in a week to answer to charges of impropriety, but failed to turn up at the Integrity Centre. It has also emerged that three other governors could be in the dock soon.
The week, a busy one for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (EACC), has seen arrests, court appearances, the impounding of vital information and further investigations could nail more senior officials in the graft purge.
On the radar
Embu Governor Martin Wambora’s failure to honour summonses by the anti-graft body was a further testament to the jitters within Delta House, the seat of the Council of Governors. This comes two days after Busia Governor Sospeter Ojaamong was arraigned in court over the alleged misappropriation of Sh8 million.
READ MORE
Tackle corruption and you will have enough to pay workers well
Former Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulal convicted of corruption
DPP Noordin Hajji said away from Ojaamong, there are three more governors on the radar as well and National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) officials’ files are nearly complete.
“We have a number of files in different stages. As at now, I have completed those of two more governors. We are also tightening lose ends for the fourth governor’s papers,” Hajji said.
As the arrests intensified, Saturday Standard, through multiple interviews with different State agencies, has learnt that the current fight against corruption is being led by a special unit, the Multi-Agency Task Team (MATT) headed by Attorney General Paul Kihara. The task team, which reports directly to the President, is also in the process of receiving polygraph machines that will be used during the vetting of officers.
The team, according to the sources, has been mandated to not only ensure prosecution but also the freezing of assets of those found culpable. Close kin of those found guilty will also be affected by the crackdowns.
For instance, graft at the county levels has seen the money trail followed from the county coffers to close relatives and friends of governors through layers of companies.
Some of the cases attributed to task team include the arrest of Kenya Bureau Standards (Kebs) senior officials, including the Managing Director Charles Ongwae and other three officials.
EACC, through their official spokesperson Yassin Amaro, confirmed that Wambora had agreed to appear at Integrity Centre before changing his mind.
Last month, the EACC promised that soon, Kenyans will see the fate of the infamous big fish being decided in courts of law and that it was certain many of those who will find themselves before the justice system will not make it out.
“Almost all counties are under probe, with former and sitting governors put under the microscope,” Amaro said.
This exercise is part of a wider attempt at cracking down on graft by the special unit set up by President Kenyatta. Communication from the Attorney General’s Office to the Saturday Standard confirmed that the other agencies with the team include the National Intelligence Service (NIS), Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Anti-Money Laundering Unit, Asset Recovery Agency, Anti Banking Fraud Unit, Financial Reporting Centre, Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Cybercrime Unit and Anti-Counterfeit Body.
A member of the team confirmed that the collation of information pertaining to persons of interest has been ongoing and that the team meets every Tuesday to deliberate on ongoing matters. Among the resolutions of the task force is the freezing of assets, both local and foreign, associated with these individuals.
“We are satisfied with the money trail we have followed. If this goes to plan, many of the people under probe will find themselves in unfamiliar waters,” the source said.
Top Government officials, including Cabinet and Principal Secretaries, parastatal heads and agency bosses have been put under the microscope and findings into their lifestyles and acquired wealth documented.
The information collected by the team will be used as part of the investigations on the lifestyle audit as directed by President Kenyatta three weeks ago.
Already, these preliminary investigations detail investment portfolios of some Government officials running into billions of shillings, almost all of it amassed over the past six years. Most of the suspect investments have been put into real estate in some of Nairobi’s most sought after addresses. Those with an appetite for foreign investment have put their money, according to members of the task force, in Malaysia and Dubai, among other countries.
NLC officials
On Wednesday, as part of the MATT investigations, EACC officials sought crucial information from the National Assembly’s Powers and Privileges Committee chaired by Speaker Justin Muturi. The documents were part of a treasure trove of papers detailing the assets and liabilities of embattled National Land Commission (NLC) chair Mohamed Swazuri and his deputy Abigael Mbagaya.
In the investigations, MATT is looking at the culpability of Dr Swazuri and Ms Mbagaya in the bribery allegations in the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) land compensation scheme. Abdi Mohamed, anti-graft director had written to the National Assembly clerk requesting for the documents to help them conduct further investigations.
The team, according to a source, is also credited with the arrest of Kebs officials and the removal of KPA managing director who had failed to prevent the entry of counterfeit goods.
The ongoing crackdown has caused panic amongst individuals formerly thought to be untouchable as the usual lobbying by those fearing they are part of the list doesn’t cut it anymore, perhaps due to MATT’s composition.
Hajji said that the Ruaraka land case is one of the high profile cases that would be complete soon.
