Nairobi, Kenya
Former Tourism Permanent Secretary Rebecca Nabutola and the immediate former Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) Managing Director Achieng Ong’onga have been slapped with a jail term following a conspiracy to fleece the ministry of Sh8.9m.
Nabutola has been jailed for four years and fined Sh1m for abuse of office and failure to comply with procurement laws, while his counterpart Ongong’a got a three-year jail term and fined Sh500, 000 for abuse of office and another Sh1m for fraud.
Tour Operator Duncan Muriuki, who owns the firm that received the money in question, has been given a lengthy prison term in relation to fraud within the Tourism ministry, earning three years in prison and a fine of Sh17.8m, and a three- year jail term in default.
The case, presided over by Anti-corruption court magistrate, Lucy Nyambura, involved investigations in the illegal payments of money to a tour company that coordinated a visit to the Maasai Mara by President Mwai Kibaki and other top government officials in 2008.
The scam led to sacking of Nabutola in 2008. Magistrate Nyambura also directed Muriuki to refund Sh800,000 to the Republic of Kenya and a further Sh500,000 to the government failure to which he will serve a further one year in prison.
The trio was charged in May 2009 following recommendations by the then Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, now known as the EACC. KACC was disbanded in August 2011, following the passage of the Ethics and Anti Corruption Commission Act.
In her findings, Magistrate Nyambura said the prosecution had proved the case against the trio. “I have considered all the evidence and the mitigation. It is clear that they were entrusted with public funds which trusts they abused,” Nyambura said.
It is my findings that the prosecution has proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and the accused must be punished accordingly. According to the prosecutors, the procurement procedures were flouted in awarding the tender to the firm that organised the tour, and blamed the PS and the former KTB boss for failing to follow laid down regulations.
“The Permanent Secretary participated in appointing the said tour company and indeed communicated the appointment to the Catering and Tourism Development Levy Trustees. She also issued instructions for payment of a further Sh400,000 to the said tour company despite the fact that the sum of Sh8,925,444, which was highly exaggerated, had not been accounted for,” according to a statement from KACC in April of 2009.
Nabutola was later charged with the offence of abuse of office contrary to Section 46 of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act 2003 and willful failure to comply with the law relating to procurement contrary to Section 45(2) (b) of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act 2003.
Ong’ong’a faced similar charges with an alternative charge of abuse of office contrary to Section 46 of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act 2003. He was charged with fraudulently making payment from public revenues for services not rendered contrary to Section 45(2)(a)iii of the said Act.
Muriuki was charged with the offence of conflict of interest contrary to Section 42(3) of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act 2003. In mitigation, Nabutola defended the trip to the Maasai Mara game reserve that included several government dignitaries.
During the three-day tour, Nabutola said the participants visited various hotels and resorts in the game reserve and held meetings with stakeholders in tourism, security personnel and local authorities on ways to improve the sector.
The writer is a Communication and Journalism student, Moi University
