Mombasa County accuses lobby groups of blackmail

Mombasa County director of communication Richard Chacha on June 25, 2017 addresses flak over advertising space. The county is on the spotlight regarding the use of public funds. PHOTO | LABAN WALLOGA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Revenues amounting to Sh204 million collected from Coast Provincial General Hospital by the county cannot be accounted for.
  • ICPC Executive Director Ndung’u Wainaina and other lobbyists alleged that the county had misappropriated Sh1 billion.

Renowned civil society activists are blackmailing the Mombasa County government with the latest Auditor-General’s report on usage of funds, officials claimed on Monday.

County communication director Richard Chacha said some lobby groups in Mombasa and Nairobi were soliciting for bribes from the county following the report in which the administration has been cited over inaccuracies in financial records.

“They sent their emissaries to our staff asking for bribes failing which they will criticise the government on the report. There will be no bribes because we know our records are straight,” Mr Chacha said.

ACCOUNTABILITY
According to the report, the county has been unable to account for Sh23 million it spent to organise its international cultural festival.

Revenues amounting to Sh204 million collected from Coast Provincial General Hospital by the county cannot be accounted for, the latest report also revealed.

Mr Chacha’s remarks came three days after the International Center for Policy and Conflict (ICPC) and some Mombasa civil society organisations accused the county of misappropriation of public funds.

INVESTIGATION

ICPC Executive Director Ndung’u Wainaina and other lobbyists alleged that the county had misappropriated Sh1 billion.

But speaking to the DailyNation, Mr Chacha asked the lobby groups to probe all counties mentioned in the report.

“If they are sincere, why didn’t they do their own investigations? Why did they start and end their queries in Mombasa? We will go before the Senate Public Accounts Committee and clear our name,” he said.

EACC
Mr Wainaina had accused the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) of failing to name individuals responsible for syphoning the funds.

“The county government of Mombasa cannot account for not less than Sh1 billion, the trail of papers cannot be seen.

"It has also been accused of running about 22 different bank accounts, some of them are opened, money is transferred then it is closed,” Mr Wainaina said.
He also asked EACC to probe the tendering and procurement process in counties, claiming some governors, their cronies and relatives controlled it.