KACC is crippled as its bosses quit office

Anti-corruption bosses left office Thursday, bringing investigations into 11 major corruption cases involving some Sh100 billion to a near standstill.

Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission director Patrick Lumumba, together with his four deputies, handed over office leaving an institution which cannot do even simple things such as incur expenditure. (Read: Court puts ejection of Lumumba on hold)

Only the director has authority to incur expenditure as the chief accounting officer.

The resignation of the bosses is required under a new law, which has reconstituted the institution as the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).

The Kacc Advisory Board will remain in place for 90 days to facilitate the setting up of the new commission.

The board’s chairman, Mr Okong’o Omogeni, said Thursday the agency would not make any new commitments under its current state.

“We are not able to make any financial commitments now; it is difficult.”

Mr Okong’o said he had written to Finance permanent secretary Joseph Kinyua asking Treasury to appoint an official with authority to incur expenditure.

“It is urgent,” he said.

Recently, the High Court temporarily suspended a section of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission Act, which required Prof Lumumba and his four deputies to leave.

“The amendment of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Bill may have been done with other interests instead of the good of the Kenyan people,” Lady Justice Mary Ang’awa said.

Prof Lumumba and his team, however, argued that they were not party to the case and that there was no need to remain in offices that had been abolished.

Their departures left the commission weakened because key investigations could not go on without a substantive head.

Some of the cases whose investigations were ongoing or had partially been completed included those at the ministries of Water, Education, Energy, Industrialisation and Foreign Affairs.

The Nation established that the commission had forwarded some files on to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

The DPP, Mr Keriako Tobiko has yet to act.

Ongoing corruption investigations are also likely to be affected because a clause in the law requires that the director of the agency provide identification documents to staff who conduct the services.

But Mr Omogeni said he had discussed the issue of identification with the Justice ministry so that the law can be changed to require that the documents be issued by the secretary of the commission.

“We have asked that the law be cleaned up to ensure we work properly. Our view is that we should be allowed to move on without interruption,” he said.

Retirement benefits

The deputy directors who left with Prof Lumumba are Dr John Mutonyi (investigations and asset recovery), Mr Pravin Bowry (legal services and asset recovery), Prof Jane Onsongo (education) and Mr Wilson Shollei (finance and administration).

Principal officer (finance and administration) Jane Muthaura has taken over as acting director.

Mrs Muthaura will also be the head of finance and administration.

The five officials are leaving office without receiving their retirement benefits.

Mr Omogeni said the board “shall in due course communicate to you your final dues and entitlements”.

He said Thursday the board will consult widely and decide on a suitable package for the directors.

“I am happy with the way I have served the public in the fight against corruption and I remain ready to serve Kenyans in any capacity in future,” Dr Mutonyi said on phone.

His colleague, Prof Onsongo, said “we have decided to follow the law and leave office. I have handed over to an officer identified by the advisory board.”

Mr Bowry said national interest had dictated that he moves on.

The board said the directors were free to apply for positions in the new commission “provided they qualified”.

The new agency will have only three commissioners, the least among all the commissions provided for in the new Constitution.

It would have a secretary who will run the day-to-day activities but whose powers would be heavily trimmed from those that were enjoyed by the former holders of the director’s office.