Economy

Auditor-General in jobs row with staff over Sh20m bribe

OUKO imag

Auditor-General Edward Ouko. His office is locked in a row with one of its top managers after the official was accused of soliciting a Sh20 million bribe. FILE PHOTO | NMG

The Office of the Auditor- General is locked in a row with one of its top managers after the official was accused of soliciting a Sh20 million bribe to alter audit findings for Kirinyaga County.

Justice Nzioki wa Makau heard that Raphael Muigai Ikame was reinstated as auditor manager in charge of Nyeri and Kirinyaga counties after investigations into the bribery allegations yielded nothing.

Mr Ikame said he received an interdiction letter dated March 29, 2018, for allegedly soliciting money amounting to Sh20 million to alter an audit report for Kirinyaga county government for the financial year 2016/17.

The letter, also filed in court, further said he demanded the bribe from county government officials to manipulate the audit findings at a meeting in a hotel on Thika-Gatanga road.

Half pay

While the office of the Auditor-General maintains Mr Ikame’s suspension was lifted, he claims he has remained on half pay since April and that disciplinary actions against him were still on.

The letter from the Auditor-General shows that Mr Ikame led a team of eight officers in conducting an audit of the Kirinyaga county government for the financial year 2016/2017 on November 15, 2017.

He was accused of summoning all contractors and suppliers of the county government as well as Kirinyaga top officials and threatening to blacklist the traders if they did not part with the money.

“You summoned former county executive committee members, chief officers and directors of the county government of Kirinyaga to appear before you with threat that you had been sent by the current administration (Governor) to investigate alleged mismanagement of funds,” the letter reads in part.

Mr Ikame’s lawyers say he has never been found culpable of any wrongdoing for the 22 years he has worked with the Office of Auditor-General, formerly Kenya National Audit Office.