Ben Kihia: Man at the centre of Harambee House scam

Until his name was published in the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report as the man at the centre of the Sh2.8 billion financial scam involving senior Internal Security officials, Ben Kihia was a quiet civil servant for 27 years.

The soft spoken man, who is now based at the Jogoo House headquarters of the Administration Police, says his current posting is the seventh since he was employed in 1987, betraying how well he has played the game of musical chairs at Harambee House.

Mr Kihia admits receiving a letter transferring him to the Ministry of Industrialisation a couple of months ago but he did not go. Instead, he says, his boss Samuel Arachi – who is the deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Administration Police – retained him, after explaining to his employer why he could not move.

“It is not true that I refused to honour the transfer,” Mr Kihia says of the PAC report’s conclusion. “Such a thing cannot happen in the in Civil Service because one cannot deploy himself,” he said, pointing to a framed picture of his boss Mr Arachi on the wall.

Mr Kihia leaves no doubt that he holds Mr Arachi in high regard – often veering off the conversation to declare his admiration for the senior cop.

Mr Kihia, a Certified Public Accountant of Kenya - CPA (K) by profession, says he can work anywhere, including the private sector but he is working for government by choice. He, however, maintains that the government still “needs to improve its terms of employment to attract professionals”.

“Young men rarely stay because career progression is too slow for their expectation,” he adds.

It took Mr Kihia 11 years to rise from the position of an account assistant to accountant two, but that has not dimmed his enthusiasm for the public service.

The senior accountant, who spent seven years as an Administration Police officer, says the posting sharpened his endurance and instilled in him discipline that has seen him through his career.

Mr Kihia joined the Administration Police service upon finishing his A-level education at the Garissa High school.

It was while serving as an AP officer that the government sponsored him for CPA level one course. 

In 1993, luck knocked on his door when he applied for an advertised opening for an assistant accountant at the Office of the President and got the job.

Mr Kihia renewed his quest for education, completing his CPA courses and moving on to become a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK).

He later enrolled for a Bachelors of Commerce degree course at KCA University and then for a Master of Science in commerce from the same institution. He graduated two weeks ago. 

The seasoned bureaucrat says he is now preparing to enrol for a doctorate degree in January.

In his current position as a senior accountant at the Administration Police Service in the Ministry of Interior and Co-ordination of government affairs, Mr Kihia handles sensitive accounts, some of which are the reason he has been named in the parliamentary committee report as the man who used a secret account at the National Bank of Kenya to make irregular withdrawal of public funds.

READ: How police chiefs used secret account to steal Sh2.8bn

“It is partly true that I handled the transactions because I manage the accounts. But the figures mentioned are not correct,” he said while restraining himself from going into details citing the privacy of the security accounts.

The PAC has named Mr Kihia as the man responsible for fraudulent dealings at the defunct Ministry of Internal Security and Provincial Administration where he served as a senior accountant. 

He admits that recent media coverage of the issue has brought him some grief but insists the truth will be known once the process is complete. 

Apart from overseeing the Administration Police’s expenditure, Mr Kihia is also a man who knows his history and has it all on the finger tips.

He remembers each and every moment of his life’s journey by year, month and date.  

Away from work Mr Kihia is a father of six. His first born is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya. The rest are still in school.

His family, he says, is the reason he wakes up every morning to go to work and earn a living.

He also finds time to read and indulges in domestic travel when time allows.  

Mr Kihia grew up in Garissa, where he also went to school.

As he continues his career as a civil servant, the accountant says his only hope is that the service will offer better remuneration to attract and retain the best brains.