State House Employee Arrested, Charged In Court

An official working as the Deputy Director of Programmes, Public Policy and President's Priority Initiatives was on Thursday, April 18 charged in court.

In a statement released by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the senior official, Pius Chirchir, was implicated in a case that prompted comprehensive investigations by the agency.

The said state officer was charged with abuse of office and attempting to commit a felony at the Makadara Law Courts.

According to DCI, a classic case of outright violation of the code of conduct for state officers saw Chichir demand a 2% stake (shareholding) from Kentegra Pyrethrum Company Limited.

This was to assist the company in bypassing the hurdles brought about by the Pyrethrum Act of 2013 which required farmers to use the electronic Tax Invoice Management System (eTIMS).

The suspect also helped the company in its case concerning the illegal sale of two (2) tons of Kentegra dried pyrethrum flowers to Pyrethrum Processing Company of Kenya.

"The suspect was arraigned on April 16, 2024, charged with the two offences, and was released on a bond of Ksh200,000 with one surety of the same amount with an option of Ksh100,000 cash bail," stated the DCI in part.

"The matter will be mentioned on June 13, 2024, ahead of its hearing set for September 17, 2024, before Court No. 7 of Makadara Law Courts."

This is not the first time a senior government official has been caught abusing his powers while in office but this is a rare case of a senior official implicated in fraud working for the highest office in the whole country.

It would therefore bring to question the integrity of such individuals who are meant to be perfect in the eyes of the public when holding such extremely high positions in the country.

In a crackdown on state officers, officers from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) on Tuesday, February 27 arrested the head of the Kwale County Treasury and his four brothers working in different county departments and anticipated to face charges related to graft.

The commission claimed that the five directed and owned two companies which they had been using to carry out fraudulent deals with the Kwale County government.

The quintet included the Kwale County revenue officer, the driver of Kwale Water and Sewerage Company Limited, the Kwale County procurement officer and an official working at the Ministry of Health, who was initially an intern at Kwale County.

They were escorted from Mombasa Central Police Station to the Mombasa Anti-Corruption Court to take a plea. EACC indicated that the charges related to 10 contracts fraudulently awarded to the two companies which were paid exaggerated amounts of Ksh44.9 million and Ksh4.01 million respectively, with the total amount distributed to the suspects.

The tenders, which they obtained in violation of procurement laws using forged documents, were for the supply and delivery of sanitation materials, food and ration, general office supplies, and institutional appliances.

Photo of a man with handcuffs. /FILE