The troubled Bomas of Kenya Chief Executive Officer Peter Gitaa Koria is on the spotlight yet again over 68 days fictitious per diem claim amounting to Sh418,200 for a seminar he attended only for a day, The Informer has established.
This is the latest revelation in our serialised exposé of brazen graft at the institution allegedly being overseen by senior top management officials and a section of board members adversely implicated as accomplices of mass siphoning of taxpayers’’ money at the state owned facility.
According to our investigations, Gitaa raised the fictitious claim through voucher A3824 and payment made through cheque number 023926.
By then, he was serving as the Acting General Manager at Bomas of Kenya before his confirmation in November 2020.
In mid-2020, Gitaa attended a review of the Finance and Accounts department in Mombasa for one day.
Consequently, records seen by The Informer shows he raised a per diem claim spanning 68 days amounting to Sh418, 200 vide Voucher Number A3824 dated 28/05/2020 prepared by one T. Muimi.
“Payee’s name and address: Peter Gitaa Koria, Ag General Manager. Particulars of payment; being payment for 68 days taskforce while conducting review of the Finance and Accounts department procedures as per attached approved letter. Amount Sh418, 200.” A payment voucher dated May 28, 2020 reads in part.
The money in question was drawn from Bomas of Kenya salaries and wages account.
When reached for comment, Gitaa said that: “Right now, I am not in a position to answer any questionnaire. When I get time, I will look into it.” Gitaa said while speaking to us on phone.
On Thursday this week, we exposed controversy pitting the multi-billion funded government institution over unaccounted Sh72million paid as catering fee services by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
The electoral body made the payment for 500 guests and sixty commission staff members hosted at the facility during the signatures verification exercise of the flopped Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) constitution amendment exercise in late 2020.
Interestingly, records at IEBC shows only 400 verification clerks were engaged by records at Bomas of Kenya shows an inflated figure of 100 clerks.
“This money cannot be accounted for.” An impeccable source told The Informer.
Our investigations have established that the payment was made in respect to the Purchase Order issued in favour of Bomas of Kenya by IEBC NO.3045.
A partial payment of Sh18.8million was paid on February 1, 2021. However, the money is nowhere to be found.
“Sh18,844,200.00 Being 25 per cent of the contract price for catering services for 500 guests and 60 commission staff as per the purchase order NO.3045. Payment term: immediate payment.” One of the correspondences seen by The Informer dated February 1, 2021 reads in part.
According to records, the contract value was Sh72, 890,000.
On December 10, 2020 the BBI Secretariat submitted 4.4 million signatures for verification to the IEBC with the signature threshold required for the referendum Bill to be forwarded to county assemblies set at one million.
On December 31, 2020, IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati launched the signatures verification exercise at Bomas of Kenya involving 400 data verification clerks and at least 60 supervisors where they took a secrecy oath while attending a one-day training before start of the verification of the 4.4 million signatures a day after.
