NAIROBI, Kenya Jun 7 – Two officials from the National Treasury have been ordered to repay Ksh39.1 million, which the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) says were illegally obtained through unauthorized allowances.
In a judgment delivered on Wednesday, Lady Justice Lucy Njuguna of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Division of the High Court found that Robert Murage and Doris Simiyu had unlawfully received public funds disguised as various allowances, including task force, extraneous, entertainment, facilitation, and other unspecified payments.
The court ordered Murage to repay Ksh20.3 million. Of this amount, Ksh11.1 million preserved in his Equity Bank account will be forfeited, while the remaining Ksh9.2 million is to be paid in cash.
Similarly, Simiyu was directed to refund Ksh18.9 million, with Ksh8.9 million preserved in her National Bank account forfeited, and the remaining Ksh10 million to be paid in cash.
The judgment follows investigations by the EACC, which began in July 2022 after the Commission received reports of misappropriation of public funds through irregular payments within the National Treasury.
“Investigations revealed that between January 2020 and June 2022, the two officials received multiple and overlapping allowances without proper approval from the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC). Some of the allowances were based on outdated or revoked government circulars, while others were entirely unauthorized or duplicated,” he said.
The Court reaffirmed that SRC advisories are binding under Article 230 of the Constitution and found that the two officials had knowingly engaged in a fraudulent scheme that resulted in their unjust enrichment at the expense of the public.
EACC welcomed the judgment saying it is a major step in the agency’s efforts to recover stolen public funds and enforce accountability in the use of public resources.
