MPs raise questions after State Department of Maritime Affairs used Ksh.2M to supply office tea

While appearing before the National Assembly's Public Accounts Committee, Principal Secretary for Shipping and Maritime Affairs Geoffrey Kaituko was tasked to explain the use of the Ksh.28 million paid as per diems.

The MPs argued that the staff were paid for more days than they actually served, possibly more than a year's worth of payments.

In response, the PS clarified that from the amount, Ksh.11.7 million was paid to officers carrying out the field activities and Ksh.2.1 million for supplying office tea and other operations. 

Shocked by the revelation, Soy MP David Kiplagat wondered how the department could use Ksh.2 million for questionable purposes such as supplying office tea. 

He advised the PS to ensure they indicate what each amount was used for during the audit process, adding that there is a possibility of a loophole within the system that is being exploited. 

"We need to know if the head of accounts can differentiate between imprest, claims, and per diems, especially in cases where significant amounts, like Ksh.2 million, are allocated for questionable purposes such as sending people to look for tea in the streets,” said Kiplagat.

"There seems to be something suspicious happening within that loophole. It's not that we expected the person to cancel and repeat transactions, but rather that there is likely a flaw in the system, and something questionable is taking place within that loophole."

This was uncovered in the Auditor General's report on the national government that covered the period running from June 2021 to June 2022.

According to Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, there were significant inconsistencies in the amount paid to staff for payment vouchers and per diems. 

The PS admitted that the officers may have received more as per diems and said that they would need to assess the entire payment vouchers during the FY 2021/22 to verify the claims. 

“Maybe we will need to get the vouchers themselves, not just the samples here. We likely need a week to gather that information and present it to the committee," the PS noted. 

Butere MP Tindi Mwale, who was the session's chairperson further questioned the legitimacy of the samples used to justify payments, suggesting they were insufficient and potentially fraudulent. 

He highlighted specific entries where officers appeared to key the same amount multiple times, indicating possible system errors. 

The lawmaker called for a forensic audit to investigate the cause of the errors and seal the corruption loopholes. 

"We need public officers who are more sincere, those who won't come and defend mistakes that are clearly evident to everyone," Mwale noted.