EACC Chief Signals Dire Fate for Ex-CS Balala in Massive Ksh 8B Scandal
In November, the High Court deemed the 1.5% fee imposed by Ruto on Kenyans as unconstitutional. However, the court postponed the enforcement of the ruling until January 10 to permit the government to appeal the decision.
During a media interview this Tuesday, Twalib Mbarak, the Chief Executive of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), stated that ongoing inquiries were focusing on the subsequent stage of the scandal. Mbarak suggested that Balala might face further questioning to provide more information regarding the misuse of funds.
During the initial stage, when a document had already been sent to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the Commission investigated the former CS’s engagement in consulting services.
Mbarak asserted that during this stage, architectural teams were hired to create the plans for building the college.
On the flip side, the focus of the second stage revolves around the project’s construction contract which was granted but has now come to a halt.
“For your information, this case has got two phases. Phase 1 is about the consultancy, and there is the construction part of it. We are yet to finish that file, and there will be a second case coming on the same matter, and most likely, it will hit the same people,” Mbarak stated.
“This is one of the sad stories of this country where a big grand project has stalled because of corruption.”
As of December 2022, the Tourism Fund website stated that the project had reached a completion rate of 77.74 percent.
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“The amount of money that that college was allocated, which was roughly Ksh2 billion, went up to Ksh8 billion. Right now, if you go to that site, it is a very sad story. You have a very big college under construction, but it is stuck,” stated Mbarak.
PoliticalPulseChat has recently discovered that the inquiries regarding the latter part are nearing completion, and the dossier, expected to result in fresh allegations, will soon be sent to the ODPP.
The specific details of the new charges and whether the EACC will arrest Balala by himself or individuals linked to him remain uncertain.
Balala was initially taken into custody a few days preceding Christmas and was accused of making an unauthorized payment of Ksh8.5 billion for the project.
The ex-CS was arrested in Nairobi on the night of December 21st, stayed at Kilimani Police Station overnight, and was then moved to Malindi for his plea hearing, where he entered a plea of not guilty.
Leah Adda Gwiyo, the ex-Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism, was among the individuals apprehended, along with a managing partner affiliated with an engineering firm.
EACC Chief Signals Dire Fate for Ex-CS Balala in Massive Ksh 8B Scandal