PS sees foreign hand in education graft claim

Permanent secretary Karega Mutahi said on Monday that there was a foreign hand in allegations of theft of education funds.

He said there was no proof that money had been lost. (READ: Treasury audit reveals Sh5.8bn fraud)

The former Education PS said evidence must be produced linking him or Education Minister Sam Ongeri to the alleged scandal.

Prof Mutahi, now the Local Government PS, said the report indicating a loss of Sh4.6 billion during his stint at the Ministry of Education must be thoroughly scrutinised.

“Let us separate politics from the war against corruption. This is not a matter on which one calls for political accountability without concrete facts because those responsible can only act on documented evidence,” the PS said.

Pressure has been mounting on the PS and Prof Ongeri to take political responsibility for the scandal and resign.

Last week, Prime Minister Raila Odinga said in Parliament that the two must bear blame since the reported loss happened under their watch.

However, Prof Ongeri and Prof Mutahi have defended themselves insisting that they were clean.

“No audit report has so far shown the actual money lost,” Prof Mutahi said.

The PS said Education ministry officials had failed to explain obvious facts that had led to auditors failing to document expenditure.

Prof Mutahi said the Sh1.93 billion said to be either stolen or unaccounted for went to schools and helped displaced Kenyans to continue with their education.

“The money went to schools that are listed and internal auditors should have no problem in auditing the schools individually,” he said.

He described the Sh2.3 billion also being questioned as a reconciliation issue and not a corruption matter.

Meanwhile Canada, like the United Kingdom, is also seeking reimbursement of its share of the lost funds from the Ministry of Education.

Canadian High Commissioner David B. Collins said they cannot continue supporting the ministry directly due to mismanagement and corruption.