House team probing PAC over bribe claims summons Ababu

Politics and policy

PAC members wanted Mr Ababu Namwamba out over allegations of taking bribes to change reports of the House team. PHOTO | FILE 

By EDWIN MUTAI, dmutai@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Justin Muturi last Thursday directed the Committee on Powers and Privileges to investigate allegations of corruption against PAC and report to the House within 21 days.

A committee appointed to investigate corruption allegations against the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has directed the watchdog’s chairman, Ababu Namwamba, to appear before it on Wednesday.

The National Assembly’s Powers and Privileges Committee also directed PAC members who have evidence on bribery allegations against their colleagues to submit their proof on the same day.

Justin Muturi last Thursday directed the Committee on Powers and Privileges to investigate allegations of corruption against PAC and report to the House within 21 days.

He also suspended operations of committee. PAC has been dogged with infighting over the fate of several of its investigative reports with claims of bribery and extortion to alter or misplace key documents.

“We have nothing much to consider today. We are just meeting to agree on modalities of our investigations and the three senior MPs to be co-opted to the committee,” said Kuresoi North MP Moses Cheboi, who is chairing the probe team.

MPs Joseph Lekuton (Laisamis), Mohammed Elmi (Lafey) and Ali Wario (Bura) were co-opted to sit on the probe committee.

The committee, which is traditionally chaired by the Speaker by virtue of his position, has 27 members. Mr Namwamba narrowly survived a vote to remove him as PAC chairman. Following the vote, several MPs called for the disbandment of the House team.

The suspension of PAC business means that its reports on the procurement of biometric voter registration kits by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission and the special audit of the Judicial Service Commission will stall.

It also paralyses the committee’s core mandate of scrutinising government books of accounts as queried by Auditor-General Edward Ouko.

PAC is currently awaiting Dr Ouko’s report on government accounts for 2013/14 financial year. PAC members wanted Mr Namwamba out over allegations of taking bribes to change reports of the House team in favour of those under investigations. However, he has denied the claims