Shock Swazuri arrest signals seriousness in war on graft

National Land Commission boss Muhammad Swazuri is among seven officials arrested on August 11, 2018 by anti-graft detectives over SGR compensation. He is the latest high profile public official to be arrested over allegations of corruption. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Prof Swazuri, NLC chief executive officer Tom Chavangi Aziz and KRC managing director Atanas Maina were arrested at dawn and detained at the EACC headquarters at Integrity Center.
  • Ms Kituyi was arrested during the LSK Annual Conference at Leisure Lodge Beach and Golf Resort in Kwale County.

  • Saturday’s dramatic arrests follows that of the former Nairobi governor, Dr Evans Kidero, on Wednesday.

The fight against corruption intensified yesterday following the arrest of National Lands Commission (NLC) chairman Muhammad Swazuri.

Prof Swazuri was arrested together with top Ministry of Lands officials over compensation paid to a city businessman for a Sh2.5 billion piece of land acquired for construction of the standard gauge railway.

Prof Swazuri, the commission’s chief executive officer Tom Chavangi Aziz and Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) managing director Atanas Maina were arrested at dawn and detained at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) headquarters at Integrity Center for processing before appearing in court tomorrow (Monday).

Saturday’s arrests are the latest in a sustained government purge of high ranking officials and politicians engaged in the vice.

TAXATION

Also locked up at the EACC police cells were Salome Munubi (director valuation and taxation committee) and Francis Mugo (director of finance and administration) from NLC.

Others are Ministry of Lands officials Gladys Muyanga (principal land registration officer) and Caroline Kituyi (registrar of Titles), as well as a private surveyor, Obadiah Wainaina.

David Some, Esther Chebet Some, Victor Kariuki (land surveyor), Elijah Nyamu (assistant land surveyor), John Mwaniki (senior lands surveyor), Peter Mburu (registrar) and proprietors of Dasahe Investment limited, Keibukwo Investment Limited and Olomotit Estate Limited were ordered to present themselves at Integrity Centre.

KEEP SUSPECTS

“A few warrants of arrests have been issued and we will keep the suspects until Monday,” EACC CEO Halakhe Waqo said.

The suspects were arrested in simultaneous raids at the crack of dawn in their respective residences within Nairobi after the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) Noordin Haji directed they be charged with various economic crimes.

Ms Kituyi was arrested during the LSK Annual Conference at Leisure Lodge Beach and Golf Resort in Kwale County.

While EACC was non-committal on specifying charges against the suspects, the Sunday Nation has learnt that the team is likely to be charged with the dubious compensation of Embakasi residents displaced by the Standard Gauge Railway that saw the commission waste public funds.

“The amount involved runs into hundreds of millions. You will get the specific charges in court on Monday,” Mr Waqo told journalists Saturday.

MILLIONS LOST

An audit of the land acquisition showed millions were lost through subjective land valuation, over-valued compensations and unexplained duplication and overpayments.

Among the plots of land were at least five parcels in Embakasi all valued at Sh215 million. It is the compensations fiasco that put the target on Prof Swazuri's back for the EACC investigators, who once raided his home in May last year.

Mr Haji said investigations by EACC established that the Ministry of Lands irregularly allocated and registered land situated on the railway reserve.

Saturday’s dramatic arrests follows that of the former Nairobi governor, Dr Evans Kidero, on Wednesday. Dr Kidero denied fraud and abuse of office charges when he appeared before Chief Magistrate Douglas Ogoti on Thursday.

Dr Kidero, former Nairobi county Treasury boss Maurice Okere and seven others were accused of leading to the loss of Sh213,327,300 between January 16, 2014 and January 25, 2016.

IMMEDIATE PROSECUTION

They allegedly conspired to commit corruption by authorising payment to various companies for services not rendered.

Police also arrested suspects named in the ongoing National Youth Service probe after the DPP ordered their immediate prosecution.

Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) managing director Charles Ongwae and nine others were also guests of the State over importation of substandard fertiliser.

Recently, the DPP ordered for the arrest of current and former senior managers at Kenya Power over procurement of defective transformers and the irregularities in pre-qualifying 525 companies for labour and transport contracts.

Sirisia MP John Waluke has been charged with fraud in a Milimani court in a case involving the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) and a company, Chelsea Freight while Busia governor Sospeter Ojamong appeared in court over a dodgy waste-disposal-tender award.

FIGHT CORRUPTION

Swazuri’s and Maina’s arrests are seen as an affirmation by President Kenyatta to put more effort in the fight against corruption in his second and final term as he seeks to leave a good legacy.

He has been under pressure to slay the dragon of corruption which has permeated almost every sphere of his government since 2013, denting the government's image and ability to tackle critical issues.

On Saturday, Deputy President William Ruto supported the ongoing fight against corruption saying constitutional offices charged with fighting the vice will get undivided support from the Jubilee government.

Speaking when he presided over the Kesses Constituency Youth and Women Empowerment Programme at Eldoret Sports Club grounds in Uasin Gishu County, the DP said that there was goodwill from the Executive adding that adequate resources will be allocated all the agencies charged with battling graft.

WELL FINANCED

“As the Executive arm of the government, ours is to ensure that all departments charged with oversight and the Judiciary are well financed so that they can effectively deliver on their mandate,” he said.

Mr Ruto said the DPP will be given more monetary allocations to enhance the fight against corruption.

“We want to see to it that the Office of the DPP is well financed so that it keeps up its good work on the fight against graft and other criminal activities,” he said.

Majority leader in the National Assembly Aden Duale also supported the ongoing arrests saying that, for the first time, EACC, DCI and ODPP are coordinating well in the fight against corruption.

“We now expect the Judiciary to do their bit to ensure that people are sent to jail. We will do all that we can to support the DCI, EACC and the DPP in terms of budgetary allocations because public resources must be used well,” Mr Duale told the Sunday Nation.

SUGAR BARONS

Uriri MP Mark Nyamita, while supporting the arrests, said it should be extended even to the sugar barons who have brought the industry onto its death knees and subjected many farmers to suffering.

“I completely support what is going on because we must send the correct message to the people holding public office, reminding them that they just custodians of public resources,” Mr Nyamita said.

The Judiciary has exhibited willingness in ensuring expeditious court processes as well as a reluctance to issue bond terms to corruption suspects.

Suspects have been spending in police cells before the bonds are processed. Bail or bond terms are meant to ensure that an accused person attends court, when required.

It is now common for high ranking government officials to spend the night at EACC as they wait to be processed for court as happened to Dr Kidero and Mr Ojaamong.

RELEASED ON BAIL

Suspects implicated in the Sh469 million National Youth Service scandal had to put up a strong argument as to why they should be released on bail.

EACC CEO Waqo said on Saturday Prof Swazuri and the rest would spend Saturday and Sunday nights in custody before they are charged on Monday.

The renewed push has cast the spotlight on the EACC which had recently been blamed for alleged laxity in investigating pilferage of public funds. The DPP once accused the commission of not presenting water tight cases and it remains to be seen if any of the investigations will finally lead into jailing of the so called “big fish.”

Two years ago, Parliament was told that the war on corruption was being lost due to turf wars between former DPP Keriako Tobiko and the EACC.

While acknowledging that corruption has deep roots and those in involved fight back viciously, Mr Waqo said investigations are ongoing in all counties.

UNDER INVESTIGATION

“We have said it before. Each and every county is under investigation. Counties have had inherent loopholes for corruption in their procurement, finance and recruitment processes,” he said at a forum in Nairobi on Friday.

In the Prof Swazuri case, Embakasi payouts were made despite a pending court case. In the suit filed at the High Court in August 2015, Nairobi county sued NLC, Kenya Railways Corporation, the chief Lands registrar and the Attorney General over alleged fraudulent compensation bid.

The county stated that paying out Sh2.5 billion was unjustified because the residents were squatters with fake title deeds and not the landowners.

The county said the land was reserved for a project and belonged to the defunct City Council of Nairobi.

But in a letter, NLC vice chairperson Abigael Mukolwe asked the managing director of Kenya Railways Corporation to confirm the acreage of the land to enable the commission finalise compensation.

FRAUDULENT COMPENSATION

“It was determined by the Commission that it will compensate the allottees subject to verification of the remaining acreage of land. In addition, the county government in conjunction with the local leaders should submit a list of verified allottees including their names, profiles, identities and parcel of land occupied,” read the letter dated October 15,2015.

This is where the railways officials were involved in the fraudulent compensation after the commission reviewed the grants and disposition on the land and decided to compensate the residents.

“Regrettably, Kenya Railways Corporation, who is the custodian of railway reserve, actively participated in the entire process of compensation undertaken for and on their behalf by NLC,” DPP Haji said.

The integrity issues at NLC have made it hard for Kenyans to trust the work being done by the commission, whose image has been eroded by internal wrangles besides the turf wars it had with its parent ministry, which ground operations for more than a year.