Former Kisii Speaker arrested over abuse of office
His arrest came after the current Kisii County Assembly deputy Clerk, Daniel Mbaka Omwoyo, was yesterday freed on a Sh50,000 cash bail and a Sh100,000 bond after he pleaded not guilty to charges of abuse of office.
Former Kisii County Assembly Speaker David Ondimu Kombo is expected to be arraigned in court today after he was arrested yesterday in Kajiado by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission officers over abuse of office.
Kombo is accused of contravening the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC)’s regulations by engaging Everline Maraburi as his Personal Assistant (P.A.) on a permanent and pensionable term, yet he was required to appoint specific staff, including the PA, on a contract basis.
“The former Speaker was arrested yesterday in Kajiado County and escorted to Kisii, where he will be arraigned today on charges of abuse of office. Kombo used his office to confer a benefit by allowing the appointment of Maraburi,” EACC spokesperson Stephen Karuga confirmed.
His arrest came after Kisii County Assembly Deputy Clerk, Daniel Mbaka Omwoyo, was yesterday freed on a Sh50,000 cash bail and a Sh100,000 bond after he pleaded not guilty to charges of abuse of office.
Omwoyo is accused of irregularly employing Maraburi, who is his niece, as a clerical officer at the Assembly without following the laid-down recruitment procedures or approval by the Public Service Board.
While appearing before Justice J. Nyariki, the Deputy Clerk denied using his office to make irregular appointments.
“Omwoyo was arrested and arraigned yesterday before Justice Nyariki at the Kisii Law Courts, where he pleaded not guilty to abuse of office charges. He was released on a cash bail of Sh50,000 or a bond of Sh100,000 with a surety of a similar amount,” Karugu confirmed.
The matter will be mentioned on Monday next week.
The arrest of the two comes two months after EACC Chairperson David Oginde confirmed in January that the anti-corruption commission had observed a pattern where Counties are using their family members as proxies when doing illegal business with the devolved units.
“We have observed an emerging pattern where public officials are enrolling close family members as conduits for theft of public funds, thus negating the divine role of the family as the foundation of virtues. We call upon family members to refuse to be enlisted in corrupt deals. Instead, parents should take up their roles in shaping societal morality,” Oginde stated.
