By Our Investigative Reporter
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recommended the prosecution of Marsabit Governor Mohamud Ali and his wife, Alamitu Guyo Jattan, over alleged involvement in a corruption scandal involving irregular tenders worth Ksh728 million. The EACC’s damning report has been forwarded to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), which is currently analysing the case file before taking further action.
The anti-graft agency has also recommended that Huka Wako Bidhu, a County Government employee, be charged alongside the governor and his spouse in connection with the tenders awarded to M/S Al Imran Investment between the 2017 and 2024 financial years.
According to the EACC’s findings, the governor and his wife failed to declare their indirect interest in contracts awarded to Burqa Ventures Limited, a company allegedly owned by Mrs Jattan. The report outlines how public funds were funnelled through firms linked to close associates of the governor, including Ororo Company Limited and M/S Damme Investment Construction Company Limited.
Bidhu and another suspect, Rukia Abduba Salesa, are listed as directors of the two companies, which allegedly received Ksh123 million from the Marsabit County Government during the seven-year period under investigation.
The probe further reveals that Bidhu and Salesa transferred Ksh2.4 million via M-Pesa to the governor’s wife. Some of the cash was also sent to the governor’s Personal Assistant, Huka, who continued to receive unexplained payments.
The EACC insists there is overwhelming evidence to charge the suspects under the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act (ACECA). Additionally, the Commission has called for the recovery of salaries allegedly paid in error to Bidhu between July 2013 and May 2013.
In a proposed charge sheet awaiting approval from the ODPP, the EACC has listed 13 charges, the first being conspiracy to commit corruption. The alleged conspiracy involves the award of tenders amounting to Ksh360,412,925 to Burqa Ventures, Ororo Company and M/S Damme Investments without proper disclosure of conflict of interest.
Governor Ali is specifically accused of knowingly benefiting from Ksh156,252,508 through Burqa Ventures, the firm allegedly controlled by his wife. Mrs Jattan, Bidhu, and Wako also face charges relating to the unlawful acquisition of public property tied to the payments made by the county government.
Evidence compiled by investigators includes county budgets from the 2017/2018 to 2023/2024 financial years, Central Bank of Kenya account documents, company registration records, M-Pesa and bank statements, and depositions from witnesses and investigating officers.
Sources within both the EACC and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have voiced concern over growing interference in corruption cases, driven by political and commercial interests. This meddling, they say, has delayed or completely derailed the prosecution of high-profile graft cases, some valued at over Ksh10 billion.
The Marsabit scandal is the latest in a growing list of corruption probes that have implicated senior county officials.
Governors currently under investigation include Kimani Wamatangi (Kiambu), Stephen Sang (Nandi), Jonathan Bii Chelilim (Uasin Gishu), Eric Mutai (Kericho), Johnson Sakaja (Nairobi), Mohamed Adan Khalif (Mandera), and the embattled Mohamud Ali of Marsabit.
