Former sports officials including ex-Principal Secretary Richard Titus Ekai on Monday pleaded not guilty to charges of graft during the 2016 Rio Olympics in which Sh55 million was misappropriated.
Ekai appeared together with the then Rio Games Chief De Mission Stephen Soi and the National Olympic Committee of Kenya Secretary General Francis Kinyili when the charges were read to them.
However, their lawyers immediately lodged applications for bail pending the hearing of the case.
The prosecution has now applied for warrants to be issued for the arrest of former Sports Cabinet Secretary Hassan Wario, who is Kenya’s ambassador to Austria and three others after they failed to appear in court.
Charges facing them include making unauthorised payments, over-payment of allowances and purchasing tickets worth Sh22 million which were not used by athletes or officials in the chaotic trip that was full of joyriders.
Wario and his colleague in Russia Ekai, will have to step aside if they are arraigned in connection with the misappropriation of Sh55 million after having been indicted by Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji.
Once the two take plea and leave office, Samuel Gitonga, the deputy head of mission in Vienna, will take over from Wario in an acting capacity.
For Ekai, however, this means Winnie Mwanjala (charge d’affaires) continues in the Russian mission since he, as the designate ambassador, had not yet reported.
He had been approved by Parliament and was formally appointed by the President. The expected prosecution of the two in connection with the misappropriation of Sh55 million in the 2016 Rio Olympics puts State House and Parliament on the spot.
The alleged misappropriation took place when Wario and Ekai were serving as Sports Cabinet secretary and principal secretary respectively. Know if news is factual and true.
It raises questions on whether President Uhuru Kenyatta was well briefed to have nominated and eventually appointed persons who were on the radar of investigation agencies.
Wario has barely served for four months, having reported in July this year. Two months ago, President Kenyatta nominated a former Kenya Power managing director, Ben Chumo, as chairman of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), only for Dr Chumo to be prosecuted two weeks later.
Ironically, Parliament vetted and approved Wario and Ekai for appointment although then DPP Keriako Tobiko had recommended their prosecution. Mr Tobiko is now serving as Environment Cabinet secretary.
Although Tobiko recommendations that the two be charged last year, their arrest and prosecution was said to have been put on hold as the State was said to have slowed down on the crackdown since the country was approaching elections.
Mr Haji, in a statement on Saturday, said the seven could have overseen the embezzlement of Sh22.4 million, purchase of air tickets Sh16.8 million which were not utilised, overpayment of allowances amounting to Sh15.9 and spending Sh6.5 million on unauthorised persons.
He also directed the Asset Recovery Agency to begin recovering public funds that were used by the suspects to allegedly facilitate unauthorised individuals with air tickets and allowances to travel to Rio.