Nairobi — The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) recovered stolen assets worth Sh 6.3 billion in the 2020/21 Financial Year, a new report has revealed.
According to the latest annual report by EACC, the corruption watchdog completed 104 investigation files on corruption and economic crimes which were forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for review and recommendation.
The Commission received and processed a total of 4,894 reports during the past financial year out of which 2,029 reports were within the EACC’s mandate to investigate.
“Out of 2,029 reports recommended for investigation; 31 percent related to bribery, 21 percent to embezzlement of public funds, 11 percent to public procurement irregularities, 10 percent unethical conduct, and nine percent to fraudulent acquisition and disposal of public property,” the EACC report said.
The recovery was a result of 17 proactive investigations conducted by the Commission during the period under review.
Some of the completed investigations include an Inquiry into allegations of irregular procurement and fraudulent payments in relation to the purchase and supply of COVID-19 emergency commodities by the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) valued at Sh 7.8 billion and the Inquiry into allegations of irregular procurement of an ultra-modern fish hub at Liwatoni Fisheries Complex in Mombasa County.
During the reporting period, a total of 529 cases were under investigation out of which 190 were related to ethical breaches.
In addition, the Commission completed 83 investigations on violations of Chapter Six of the Constitution and Leadership and Integrity Act, 2012.
The report indicated that the Commission carried out 105 random and targeted integrity tests within public institutions including National Police Service (NPS), Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Nairobi City County Government, Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) among others in the period under review.
“Out of the 105 tests, 81 failed, 15 passed and 9 were inconclusive. For the officers who failed, the Commission recommended diverse administrative action to the respective institutions,” the report indicated.
The EACC report pointed out that the commission received and processed 8,049 integrity verification requests from different institutions and individuals over the reporting period.
“Out of these, 4,501 were requests from National Government, 3,454 from County Governments and 94 from private institutions. Out of the 8,049 individuals, 25 were found to be non-compliant with Chapter Six of the Constitution, of these 20 were from National Government while five from the County Government, the relevant agencies were advised,” said the report.