MPs have uncovered an alleged fraud scheme involving state and public servants accused of defrauding taxpayers through misuse of daily subsistence allowances and imprest payments.
National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee, while scrutinising audits of the Shipping and Maritime Affairs department, singled out significant discrepancies in payment vouchers and the accuracy of the imprest register.
Imprest totalling Sh28 million paid to staff in domestic travel and subsistence allowances during the financial year ending June 30, 2022, is under scrutiny.
The committee is considering the matter following a report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, which cast doubt on the validity of the payments.
Gathungu flagged the issue, saying the amount paid suggested officers were in the field for more days than their work schedules could realistically accommodate.
Maritime PS Geoffrey Kaituko, when he appeared before the MPs on Thursday, admitted this assertion.
“This report covers the entire financial year and clearly shows that the payments made to the officers exceeded the actual number of days they worked,” he told MPs.
“This suggests they were paid for more days than they actually served, possibly amounting to more than a year's worth of payments.”
This was even as MPs at the committee pressed him to clarify his statement, and whether it meant he was agreeing with Gathungu on the same.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo asked, “Are you agreeing with the Auditor General's findings? It seems your response contradicts the Auditor General's statement, would you like to correct it?”
“In very polite terms, the Auditor General is essentially stating that these claims were fraudulent. When they mention that the number of days claimed exceeds what was possible, they are indicating fraud. Aren’t we seeing fraud here?”
On this, PS Kaituko said, “Maybe we will need to get the vouchers themselves, not just the samples here. We likely need a week to gather that information and present it to the committee.”
He clarified that the Sh28 million in question was related to daily subsistence allowances and standing imprest payments.
“Sh11.7 million was paid to officers carrying out field activities, while Sh2.1 million was allocated for tea and other office operations,” the PS explained, adding that Sh14.2 million was paid to field officers in various counties.
Soy MP David Kiplagat called for a forensic audit to investigate the cause of the repetitive errors and to uncover what was really happening.
His Butere counterpart Tindi Mwale, who chaired the meeting, questioned the legitimacy of the samples used to justify payments. He supported the call for a forensic audit.
The MP highlighted specific entries where officers appeared to receive and surrender the same amount multiple times, indicating possible system errors or misuse.
“When you say we have errors in the IFMIS system, do you mean all these negatives, the repetitions are errors in the IFMIS system?” Mwale asked.
The maritime department’s head of accounting explained that the IFMIS system at times creates an error and doesn't clear the impact, leading to a repeat invoice to correct it.
“That's why you see the transaction repeated; it’s actually the same imprest being surrendered,” he said.
“If you make a surrender, which has an error, it will not clear that person from the system,” the officer said.
For MP Kiplagat, however, there is no problem with the system but with the users of the same.
“These users have a way of conning the system to accept multiple imprests on a single person. There is no problem with the system,” he said.
MPs on the committee emphasised the need for proper distinction between imprest, claims and per diems during the audit process.
They cited a certain pattern pointing to the possibility of a loophole within the system that is being exploited.
