The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) confirmed that Mr Oparanya was grilled about the alleged embezzlement of Ksh.1.3 billion during his two-term tenure as Governor of Kakamega County. While his allies in the Azimio Coalition claim that the arrests and interrogations were politically motivated, sources say that the detectives were acting based on a report from the Auditor General that revealed financial mismanagement during his time in office
Last week’s dramatic arrest of former Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya alongside his two wives by officers from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) could be a result of a report released by the office of the Auditor General.
The Commission confirmed that Mr Oparanya was grilled about the alleged embezzlement of Ksh.1.3 billion during his two-term tenure as Governor of Kakamega County. While his allies in the Azimio Coalition claim that the arrests and interrogations were politically motivated, sources say that the detectives were acting based on a report from the Auditor General that revealed financial mismanagement during his time in office.
In the latest report, the former governor awarded a contract to a local company for the fencing of a plot at Marama/Shinamwenyuli at a sum of Ksh. 1,992,228 on July 6, 2021, without following due process. Investigations revealed that the contractor was paid Ksh. 1,507,014. However, no evidence was provided to show that the tender was advertised, opened, and evaluated as required by law, contrary to Section 78 (11) of the Public Procurement and Assets Disposal Act, 2015.
Further, ownership documents were not provided to confirm ownership of the land by the County Executive, contrary to Regulation 104(1) of the Public Finance Management (County Governments) Regulations, 2015. The report further revealed that Mr Oparanya approved payments of Kshs. 3 million to the Council of Governors whose nature and purpose were not explained. This is contrary to Section 37 of the Inter-Governmental Relations Act, 2012.
Further, the county realized actual receipts of Ksh. 12,922,896,868 while expenditures amounted to Ksh. 14,314,195,379, resulting in an unexplained over-expenditure of Ksh. 1,391,298,511. No explanation was provided on how the excess expenditure was financed or whether it was approved by the County Assembly in line with Section 131(3)(a) of the Public Finance Management Act, 2012.
The executive also approved a payment of Ksh.5, 086,400 paid to Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) for attending a joint meeting with the County Assembly Liaison Committee Members and Members of the Monitoring and Implementation Committee to discuss various achievements and implementation of projects held on 2nd and 3rd July, 2021 at a hotel in Eldoret.
However, an invitation letter issued for the event indicated that the County Executive would cater for conference facilities, while those invited would meet their daily subsistence allowance from their respective departments. No explanation was provided as to why the County Executive paid MCAs allowances against the provisions of the letter of invitation.
In addition, no monitoring and evaluation reports were provided for verification to confirm that the meeting took place and that its objective was achieved. Further, the executive approved a payment of Ksh.281, 379,797 to a Company for the supply and delivery of 75,000 bags of planting fertilizer and 75,000 bags of top-dressing fertilizer. However, the contract agreement indicated that the contract sum was Kshs.244, 350,000 being Ksh.131, 925,000 for planting fertilizer and Ksh.112, 425,000 for top dressing fertilizer. No explanation was provided as to why the supplier was paid Ksh.281,379,797 instead of the contract sum of Ksh.244,350,000 resulting in excess payment of Ksh.37,029,797.
The supplier was paid Ksh .87,706,490 for the supply of 58,510 bags of top dressing fertilizer while the actual deliveries made were 58,470 bags. The non-delivery of 40 bags worth Ksh.59,960 was not explained. Similarly, the supplier was paid Ksh.99, 796,865 for the supply of 56,735 bags of planting fertilizer while the actual deliveries made were 56,700 bags.
No explanation was also given for the non-delivery of 35 bags worth Ksh.61, 565. A review of delivery notes and store records during a visit to Lugari Sub-county revealed that 33 bags of dressing fertilizer worth Ksh.49, 467 could not be accounted for.
