Monday, April 8, 2024 - Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino has called for the impeachment of Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja over gross misconduct and financial mismanagement.
This comes after the Auditor General painted a picture of fiscal
irregularities within the county.
In a statement, Babu highlighted several concerning findings
from the auditor report for the year ending June 2023.
These findings included glaring anomalies in asset
acquisition, ghost workers, pending bills, suspicious bank accounts, and
unaccounted payments amounting to billions of shillings.
Governor Sakaja, in his State of the County address delivered just a day prior, painted a rosy picture of Nairobi's future, envisioning a city of order, dignity, hope, and opportunity.
"We have
lived up to that standard," Sakaja remarked, referring to an end to
corruption and nepotism.
However, Auditor General Nancy Gathungu's report tells a
different story.
It reveals over-expenditure, dubious payments, and suspect asset acquisition under the administration of Governor Sakaja.
Irregular
payments totalling Ksh17 million to 26 county workers, including basic pay,
rental, house supplementation, and service gratuity, were flagged by the audit.
Furthermore, the report highlighted a failure to recover
PAYE from the salaries of 393 officers as required by law, along with
instances where employees were earning net salaries less than a third of their
basic pay, contrary to established human resource policies.
Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, in her report, expressed
dissatisfaction with the financial statements of the Nairobi County Executive,
stating they did not accurately represent the financial position of the county
as of June 30, 2023.
The audit further revealed discrepancies in financial statements, inaccuracies in pending accounts and payables, and unsupported utilities, supplies, and services.
Additionally, Governor Sakaja's failure to
appear before the Senate Public Accounts and Investment Committee to address
the queries raised by the Auditor General has drawn criticism.
Babu Owino has urged County Assembly members to take
decisive action to safeguard public funds and ensure accountability in Nairobi
County.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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