The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recommended charges against five officials from the Kitui County Government for corruption and economic crimes related to the misappropriation of Covid-19 funds during former Governor Charity Ngilu’s tenure.
Senators were shocked and confused when it was revealed that the land on which the Kitui County Textile Centre (KICOTEC) was built does not belong to the county but was forcibly taken from Syongila Youth Polytechnic.
EACC officials, who appeared before the Senate County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee chaired by Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi, disclosed that Sh500 million allocated to Kitui County for Covid-19 mitigation in 2019-2020 was misused, with a portion diverted to KICOTEC for the supply of equipment.
EACC’s investigations found that Kitui County received Sh120 million and Sh300 million as conditional grants for Covid-19 interventions. However, the funds were not used as stipulated by the guidelines and were instead diverted to non-Covid related activities, constituting misappropriation.
The recommendations for charges followed earlier allegations of procurement irregularities and conflict of interest against Ngilu, particularly regarding the establishment and operation of KICOTEC. It was alleged that Trendy Links Ltd, a company owned by Ngilu’s son, was irregularly appointed to run the facility in 2018.
In a document submitted to the Senate, EACC confirmed that their investigations had been completed and the file forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) with recommendations to charge the five officials for various corruption and economic crimes. This comes despite testimony from officials of the Syongila Youth Polytechnic, who described how they were harassed and intimidated to surrender the land title for the construction of KICOTEC. The Senate committee had also summoned current Governor Julius Malombe and former board members of KICOTEC.
