Suspended Communications Authority boss Ezra Chiloba has denied accusations of financial impropriety levelled against following an internal auditor.
In a brief chat with the Star, he declined to comment further on the matter in which together with nine other top officials they been accused of not following the right procedures in granting close to Sh663 million in the staff mortgages.
"These are just allegations. I'll wait for a due justice process,'' Chiloba said in a brief call.
On Monday night, Chiloba was relieved of duties in a short memo signed by the authority's board chairperson, Mary Wambui.
"Following a meeting of the Authority’s Board held on September 18, 2023, resulting in the suspension of the director general, I am pleased to inform all staff of the appointment of Christopher Wambua as a director general in acting capacity effective today until further notice," the memo read.
According to the audit Chiloba and nine other top officials at the authority allegedly mishandled mortgages and allowances running into millions of shillings.
The Special Board Audit and Risk Committee (BARAC) Meeting held on August 8 details mismanagement allegations against Chiloba.
According to the report, Chiloba and his management team at the authority oversaw the refinancing of mortgages to the tune of Sh364.8 million for staff who lacked evidence of the upgrades or improvements for their purchased or construction houses.
The Joe Okeng'o team is also blaming the CA's management for wrongly approving loans without consideration of the contracts, a move that has seen the scheme pile Sh29 million in defaults.
Mortgage scheme repayment defaulters were mainly officers who had left the Authority. The report shows that they were cleared without due regard to outstanding obligations to the Authority.
"Despite assurances from Management that there was no record of default or non-payment of the mortgage loans as shared in the Board meeting held on May 3, 2023, the audit exposed cases of default,'' the report reads.
The report has a case where Chiloba is alleged to have used his office to approve a mortgage for himself, pointing to abuse of power, which the board says is an offence under Sections 41 and 42 of the Anti-Corruption.
It is alleged that Chiloba applied and self-approved a mortgage loan to facilitate the purchase of property between himself and Jacob Simiyu Wakhungu, without subjecting the details of the transaction to interrogation and approval by a higher authority.
The report states that he purchased a house and seven-acre piece of land, a number beyond the required one-acre limit in violation of the civil servants housing scheme requirement.
The report shows that the loan application was approved by a junior staff member and there is no evidence to support the fact that the junior staff member carried out requisite due diligence and advice management including but not limited to the relationship between the seller and the buyer and the size of the property.
The former DG is said to have received Sh25 million disbursed to an account number 0180281053527 held at Equity Bank in the name of Kitale Hilmost Limited.
However, according to the report, interrogation to confirm the identity of the seller at the Companies Registry established the sole director and shareholder of Kitale Hilmost Ltd as Ezra Chiloba Simiyu, who is also the buyer.
The value of the said property, the report states was inflated by 64 per cent, with the audit report putting its actual value at Sh16.7 million.
The audit further reveals that there was about a 20 per cent variance in the valuation of the whole scheme between Government valuers and privately contracted valuers. This was on the valuation of construction material.
Given the magnitude of variance, it was noted that the private valuation process was unprocedural and intent was dishonesty.
"Under the Anti-corruption and Economic Crimes Act, Sections 42 and 48, the report seeks that disciplinary measures and recovery of lost assets be undertaken,'' the report reads.
