Activist asks court to freeze personal account holding public finances

By SAM KIPLAGAT
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Summary

• The activist named the committee’s chief executive, Peter Leley, saying he directed public funds to a private account and Monica Wambua, the committee’s deputy director, for managing public funds using his account private banking.
• The IGTRTC has taken over the functions of the Transitional Authority and is mandated to establish a framework for consultation and cooperation between the national and county governments.

Activist Okiya Omtatah has asked the High Court to freeze an account at Stanbic Bank operated by the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee (IGRTC), claiming it is a personal account used to manage public funds.

In an emergency certificate, Mr Omtatah says he is concerned that the large sums of public funds, which have been deposited in the account, could be exposed since the account is not subject to checks and balances under the law, which governs public accounts to protect public money. .

The activist named the committee’s chief executive, Peter Leley, saying he directed public funds to a private account and Monica Wambua, the committee’s deputy director, for managing public funds using his account private banking.

The IGTRTC has taken over the functions of the Transitional Authority and is mandated to establish a framework for consultation and cooperation between national and county governments, among other functions. The committee was also responsible for the identification, verification and transfer of the assets of the decentralized units.

“There has been no delay in filing this application as the applicant/applicant has just learned that on October 19, 2021 or thereabouts, to allow the 1st interested party to proceed with the valuation of public assets , the National Treasury transferred some 180 million shillings to the State Department of Devolution, which then transferred the funds to the IGRTC but, as accountant, the 1st respondent (Mr Leley) used its discretion illegally to transfer the money to the personal account,” he said in an affidavit.

He asks the court to freeze the operations of the account, pending the decision of the request.

Mr Omtatah also wants the court to order the Auditor General to carry out a forensic audit of all accounts managed by the IGRTC, showing the flow of money to and from said account.

“It is the petitioner’s case that the decision to use a personal account to manage public funds is both illegal and unconstitutional and, therefore, invalid,” he said.

He says there was no public input into the decision to use the personal account to manage Committee funds.