Kirinyaga Governor Anne Mumbi Waiguru is facing an arrest days after ditching the Jubilee Party for the United Democratic Alliance (UDA)
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke on Thursday, October 28, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) spokesperson Yassin Amaro stated that the commission has finalized an investigation on a graft case involving Governor Waiguru and other county officials.
Amaro stated that the investigation files will be submitted to the office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) after which prosecution will begin.
"We have completed our investigations on the matter (the graft allegation) and we will forward the files to the office of the Director of Public Prosecution for the prosecution to begin," he stated.
Waiguru will be charged alongside the County Chief Finance Officer Mugo Ndathi, Kirinyaga County Assembly Speaker Anthony Gathumbi, Leader of Majority James Murango, and chairman of the Budget Committee at the County Assembly David Mathenge.
The governor together with the county officials will answer to charges of conspiracy to commit an economic crime, abuse of office, false accounting, deception, and forgery.
They are accused of planning to defraud the county by wiring millions of shillings through a dubious land survey tender and paying questionable allowances to the governor and county officials.
In one of the charges, Waiguru is accused of planning to make an irregular payment of Ksh52.8 million to a land surveying company known as GeoAcres Survey Limited which is owned by former Kirinyaga Central Member of Parliament Joseph Gachoki Gitari.
The EACC further stated that the company was not qualified to receive the tender which was estimated to cost ksh4,500 per acre since it had not been registered by the Land Survey Board at the time. The anti-graft agency also stated that the planned payment of Ksh52.8 million shillings was highly exaggerated since the tender was only supposed to cost Ksh4,500 per acre.
But in a close rejoinder, the governor claims that the move by EACC is politically instigated. "Surely, barely 48hrs after we decamped to UDA, and now this? As a believer in the rule of law this is unfortunate. Its intention is to dissuade those contemplating the same & an attempt at engineering succession politics. it won't work. Kenyans are not stupid," posted Waiguru on her Twitter account.
Earlier, Waiguru insinuated that the summons was made because of her stand on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) after it flopped and the 2022 succession politics.
"Last time I said … 'on BBI let me keep quiet a bit...' immediately, EACC raided my office… Recently I said am '… introspecting on the political way forward…' and again, immediately I get EACC summons, complete with all the subtle threatening inflexibilities…Is it just coincidence, witch-hunt, or the usual attempt to shape narratives for 2022 succession politics?” she posed.
The EACC spokesperson dismissed the claims stating that it is a constitutional mandate for the commission to investigate state officers irrespective of their political affiliation.
