Independent Electoral and Boundary Commission chairman Wafula Chebukati is on the spot after the electoral agency audit report for 2016/2017showed that Sh9.2 billion was unaccounted for.
According to a report by the Auditor-General. (IEBC) close to Sh700 million was used on food alone in its county offices during the 2017 General Election.
Auditor-General Edward Ouko has also questioned irregular expenditure on media services incurred by the commission during October 26, 2017, repeat presidential election as well as unsupported expenditure on event organising services and over-payment for the national tallying centre in the August 2017 elections.
The audit report tabled in the National Assembly by the leader of majority Aden Duale shows that the commission irregularly paid a whooping Sh691,526,310 for the catering services.
The auditor’s report also shows that 1,000 modems and SIM cards loaded with data were misused. The commission bought 149,604.5GB of data at Sh127, 625,926 but only utilized 605.3GB worth Sh515, 629.
The expenditure of food, which is part of the Sh2.2 billion budgeted on hospitality, supplies and services, had contracts awarded to service providers based on predetermined rates issued from the commission’s headquarters at the Anniversary Towers in Nairobi.
The awarding of the contracts was done in total disregard to Article 227 (1) of the Constitution, which requires fairness, equity, transparency, cost-effectiveness and competition in the process of procurement of public goods and services.
The commission is also on the spot over the Sh36.2 million unsupported expenditure on event organizing services by Wanderjoy Party World limited.
Mr Ouko says that the commission claimed to have used a contract between the State Department of Interior headed by Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang’i and Wanderjoy Party World limited to procure the firm.
The auditor said the commission did not, however, provide documentary evidence to prove that the State Department of Interior had carried out the required procurement procedures before engaging the firm.
On July 6, 2018, Mr Chebukati filed an internal procurement audit report in court as an exhibit to explain why the former Chief Executive Officer, Ezra Chiloba, was sent on a three-month compulsory leave.
Among the anomalies in the report were inflated costs that were above the contract price, lack of contract details, extension of the contract beyond required time and payment for goods and services not required during the repeat election.
Mr Chebukati’s affidavit said the audit report implicated Mr Chiloba of all the wrongdoing and irregularities and that this informed his decision to suspend him until the truth was uncovered.