The Ethics and Anti- Corruption Commission (EACC) on Thursday clarified allegations of misleading amounts in case against four Taveta County Officials accused of graft.
In a response to an article by one media outlet, the Commission maintained that, “The amount stated in the charge sheet only related to the accused persons charged yesterday (Wednesday, but not the entire amount involved in the fraudulent scheme by the arrested county officials.”
EACC pointed out that certain media’s headlines had erroneously misrepresented what transpired before the Mombasa Anti-Corruption Court.
Relatedly, the actual amount allegedly stolen by the accused persons was not a substantive issue before the court.
The Commission elaborated that during the Wednesday arraignment, the judge stated the Ksh7 million earlier reported by EACC would be wrong if the charge sheet indicating Ksh4 million was anything to go by but underscored the charge sheet was not the point of reference.
“In dismissing the accused persons' bid to gag the EACC and media, Chief Magistrate Hon. Alex Ithuku observed that the figure of Ksh7 million earlier reported by EACC would be wrong if the charge sheet indicating Ksh4 million was anything to go by,” the Commission's statement read in part.
“Thus, the Hon. Magistrate’s words “if the charge sheet before me is anything to go by…” were not in vain,” EACC emphasized.
“It is, therefore, clarified that the Commission's earlier report on the graft case which this story referred to as misleading is, indeed, unimpeachable.”
It comes as EACC detectives on Tuesday, October 22 nabbed four senior Taita Taveta county officials who allegedly embezzled over Ksh7 million from county coffers for World War 1 commemoration.
The quartet were arraigned in Mombasa Anti-Corruption Court to answer to graft charges levelled against them.
Preliminary investigations showed that the four forged some of the documents in order to siphon the money out of the County Government’s accounts.
Reportedly, a section of the vendors who were listed as having done business with the County for the event denied supplying anything further cementing the strength of the case.
The World War One commemoration event is an annual event held by the Taita Taveta County Government attracting a huge number of local and foreign tourists as well as foreign diplomats from the UK, France, Germany, Canada and Belgium.
