EACC raises alarm over imprest fraud by senior county officials using proxies

In a statement delivered on Tuesday, EACC Chief Executive Officer Abdi Mohamud indicated that rogue officers have been using junior county staff, including interns, to hatch fraudulent schemes aimed at looting public funds through fictitious payments.

The statement, read by EACC Western Region Manager Eric Ngumbi, further highlighted a spike in such cases toward the end of financial years, when devolved units scramble to exhaust all available resources before the closure of financial books.

“The Commission remains vigilant and reminds all accounting officers of their responsibility to ensure compliance with financial management laws. Any person found to have made or facilitated irregular or unlawful payments will be held personally liable,” the statement read in part.

The remarks were made during the opening of a three-day integrity and anti-corruption workshop in Kisumu, which brought together the senior leadership of the Bungoma County government.

In attendance was Bungoma County Governor Ken Lusaka, who revealed robust plans to seal graft loopholes in the county. Lusaka hinted at plans to digitize revenue collection and called on all county officers to exercise vigilance when dealing with imprests.

“I have always insisted that imprests must be paid to the account of whoever is undertaking the assignment, and that person must account for it afterwards,” he said.

On the subject of collaboration, the county boss urged the anti-graft watchdog to ensure their investigations are grounded in law, disputing claims that the agency is sometimes used to settle political scores.

This comes just weeks after a confrontation in Trans Nzoia, where EACC vehicles were torched during the arrest of Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya.

“What we mostly have an issue with is how the summons are carried out. As a governor, it’s highly unlikely that I would run away, yet the same procedure is applied across the board,” Lusaka remarked.

Western Region Manager Eric Ngumbi reassured the public of EACC’s impartiality, vowing to continue wielding the anti-graft sword.