The National Assembly Committee on Cohesion and Equal Opportunities has called for investigations into alleged corruption in the office of Auditor General Nancy Gathungu.
In a meeting held on Tuesday, November 19, the committee demanded a probe to verify claims of whether abuse of office, corruption, tribalism, favouritism and mismanagement in Gathungu’s office were true.
The allegations were raised by a section of staff members at the Auditor General's office who drafted a petition to the parliamentary committee protesting alleged illegalities in the said office.
Workers at Gathungu's office who sought anonymity said that cases of corruption, abuse of office, tribalism, favouritism in training and hostile environment were rampant.
They further alleged that some of them were subjected to suffering and mental torture which they claimed hampered their efforts to deliver services effectively.
“Over 200 staff members allegedly possess fake qualifications, including Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certificates and no action has been taken against them,” claimed one of the employees in the Auditor General’s office.
During the session chaired by Kasipul Member of Parliament Charles Were, the lawmakers noted that the allegations by the staff were grievous and needed prompt investigations.
Were explained that the petitions would be presented to the National Assembly's Public Petitions Committee for thorough scrutiny and further probe by relevant agencies.
The committee reiterated that such petitions were domiciled in the Petitions Committee but urged the employees to identify themselves first as the probe could not be conducted on allegations made by anonymous employees.
“The law is very clear. Petitions or complaints delivered to the National Assembly must contain details of the authors such as names and signatures among others,” said Nyeri Town MP Duncan Mathenge.
Meanwhile, Kamukunji MP Yusuf Hassan claimed that the happenings in the Auditor General's office were internal wrangles occasioned by the change of leadership at the helm.
“The Committee needs to be careful while handling the matter. We should be objective and professional to avoid taking a direction that might amount to undermining the office,” MP Hassan commented.
