The season 2 of the National Youth Service (NYS) scandal trial begins on Monday before Anti-Corruption Court magistrate Peter Ooko.
The former Youth Affairs PS Lilian Omollo and 36 other suspects are expected to begin trial and will be the first batch of suspects the DPP Noordin Haji said should be charged in relation to the loss of Sh225 million at the agency.
The suspects will be charged for conspiracy to commit an offence of Economic Crime, abuse of Office, wilful failure to comply with applicable procedures and guidelines relating to management of public funds.
Others are neglect of official duties, fraudulently making payments, breach of Trust, making documents without authority and uttering false documents.
In addition to the above, they will also be charged with false accounting, fraudulent acquisition of public property, dealing with suspect property and money laundering.
In total, 54 suspects will face trial in the loss of Sh468 million from the youth service in the trial spread across three clusters.
All the suspects have denied charges of conspiring to defraud the agency.
DPP Haji has about 43 witnesses and will present evidence orally, electronically and in hard copy.
In a tweet on Monday the ODPP said,”Through video clips, flip charts and infographics, the DPP will demonstrate how accused colluded and facilitated payment of Sh225M to fictitious entities,”
Hg of NYS 2 corruption case involving former PS Lilian Omollo & 36 others starts today. Thro’ video clips, flip charts & infographics .@ODPP_KE to demonstrate how accused colluded & facilitated payment of sh 225M to fictitious entities#AntiCorruption_ODPP pic.twitter.com/1QfYV4qfBM
— ODPP_KE (@ODPP_KE) October 29, 2018
Those to testify include IFMIS officers from the National Treasury, bank officials, contractors and document examiners.
The DPP, in his opening statement ahead of the the trial, said that he will prove that colossal amounts were paid as pending bills yet they did not fit the description of a pending bill as they were slotted into the NYS stock of pending bills.
He said that for instance, Ngiwaco, Njewanga, Jerrycathy Enterprises and Annwaw Investments did not appear in the list of pre-qualified suppliers by the Department of Public works.
“We shall demonstrate that the perpetrators extent of fraud was incomprehensible, inconceivable and unethical to a point where documents were backdated and doctored to look like they were genuine,” Haji said, terming it impunity in its highest order.
The second batch of suspects will be arraigned between January 7 to 31. Omollo and former NYS Director General Richard Ndubai will be among those to take the stand between those dates.
Omollo and her co-accused were charged on May 29 after a dramatic series of arrests that occurred mostly at night.
She was sacked in July in a mini-cabinet reshuffle that saw President Uhuru Kenyatta pick Francis Otieno as her replacement.