Senator Lucy Gichuhi involved in a corruption scandal

Australian Senator Lucy Gichuhi

Australian Senator Lucy Gichuhi got into trouble after her travel records revealed that she owed taxpayers Sh216, 327 for two return airfares which she used to fly two relatives for her birthday party.

She has since agreed to pay back the money and an ­additional 25 per cent penalty.

The allowance was a fund which MPs can use to pay for family members to join them on ­parliamentary, electorate or official business at Commonwealth expense.

Senator Gichuhi was born in Kenya and is the first person of Black African descent to be elected to the Australian Parliament.

Before her election, a question was raised in the court about Gichuhi's eligibility on citizenship grounds.

However, this was not an issue as Kenya did not allow dual citizenship and she became an Australian citizen in July 2001, two years after her arrival in 1999.

The Constitution of Kenya that was current at the time meant that any person who voluntarily applied for the citizenship elsewhere lost his or her Kenyan citizenship.