Jubilee MPs ask Duale, Murkomen to step aside over NYS cash theft links

Two Jubilee MPs have asked Garissa Township MP and Leader of Majority Aden Duale and Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen to step aside over alleged links to the Ksh 791 million theft at the National Youth Service (NYS).

In a press briefing held at Parliament buildings Wednesday, Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter and his Kapseret counterpart Oscar Sudi called for investigations into the allegations levelled against Duale and Murkomen adding that any money lost through fraudulent transactions at the NYS must be recovered.

He further stated that all other people mentioned in former Devolution and Planning CS Anne Waiguru’s affidavit, including Deputy President William Ruto’s aide Farouk Kibet should resign.

Duale has, however, denied the allegations calling on Waiguru to provide evidence to her claims.

On Tuesday, an affividavit that had been filed by the former Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru caused a stir after it linked Deputy President William Ruto’s associates to the scam.

In the affidavit, Waiguru claimed that she had been informed by the then acting senior Deputy Director General of NYS Adan Harakhe, of a claim by one of the suspects, Ben Gethi, that the illegal payments totalling to over Ksh 800 million were for companies associated with Finance CS Henry Rotich who was allegedly Ruto’s point man.

Waiguru also linked close associates of the Deputy President including his personal assistant Farouk Kibet, Senator Kipchumba Murkomen and Leader of Majority in Parliament Aden Duale to the saga.

During the initial investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Duale and Murkomen, according to Waiguru, threatened the former assistant director of NYS Aden Harakhe, warning him of dire consequences should he fail to instruct the DCI to stop the investigations.

Waiguru claimed that Harakhe informed her through a memo that Murkomen had visited him in his office after he was allegedly directed by then Principal Secretary Peter Mangiti.

She filed an annexure of a memo allegedly written by Harakhe to her in June 2015 detailing how the scam evolved.

The memo, which allegedly reveals former PS Mangiti’s instructions to Harakhe, states that: “Those payments were for companies associated with CS Rotich who assisted us to get funding and other wazees. I will introduce you to a young man called Ben, sit with him and agree how to finalise the issues.”

Ben Gethi is later reported to have claimed to be the point man for CS Rotich.

He is reported to have further told Harakhe: “You are from the field, we shall teach you how to survive in the city and government offices.”

According to Waiguru, Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, at around the same time, visited her office and stated that he represented his clients whose funds had been stopped at IFMIS and bank accounts frozen by the DCI. The frozen accounts were mainly associated with Josephine Kabura and Ben Gethi.

Waiguru claimed that Harakhe did not bow to pressure from Murkomen.

She further claimed that during the entire period, there was constant communication between the Deputy President’s personal assistant Farouk Kibet and Ben Gethi on phone, some of them lasting for hours.

The former CS has insisted that she was the whistle-blower and not a beneficiary in the scandal.

@benjaminwafula