Three Nairobi City county assembly officers have been arrested for conspiring to defraud the county of Sh997,926. Fredrick Mwangi (Senior Finance and Planning Officer), Philomena Nzuki (Principal Accountant), Adah Onyango (Deputy Clerk) were arrested at the assembly premises.
Police are still looking for three others namely James Kaguma (senior procurement officer), Clerk Jacob Ngwele, and Raphael Maluki – proprietor of Primara Ventures.
Earlier, DPP Nordin Haji directed the DCI to arrest the six over a questionable Sh997,926 tender for supply of books. Primara Ventures is said to be the firm said to have been paid the cash for the books which were not delivered.
The said books were to be procured for the County Assembly resource centre in the 2016/2017 financial year. They are among 5 officials whose arrest was ordered by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji following investigations by the DCI into the alleged fraud.
Those wanted include the Clerk Jacob Muvengei, Adah Onyango (Deputy Clerk), Philomena Nzuki (Principal Accountant), James Kariuki (Senior Procurement Officer) and Fredrick Mwangi (Senior Finance and Planning Officer). Also to be arrested and arraigned in court alongside the officials is Raphael Maluki who is the proprietor of Primara Ventures.
According to investigators, Primara Ventures was irregularly awarded a tender worth Sh997,726 to the County Assembly Resource Centre.
Investigations further revealed that the tender was never advertised and quotations irregularly prepared by procurement officers working for the county assembly.
In addition, not a single book was ever delivered yet the money was paid out to Primara Ventures. DPP Haji disclosed that he reviewed the file sent to him by the DCI before giving a greenlight for the officials to be charged.
“I have independently reviewed the file and I’m satisfied that the persons named herein actively participated in the perpetration of the alleged criminal activities and should therefore be charged and prosecuted,” his statement read in part. DCI confirmed that Fredrick Mwangi, Philomena Nzuki and Adah Onyango were already behind bars.
