EXCLUSIVE: Massive Corruption Web Exposed in Kakamega County Government

“The scale of rot in Kakamega County is beyond alarming. It is institutionalized theft of public funds.” — Whistleblower Report

In what appears to be one of the most damning corruption scandals to hit devolved governments in Kenya’s history, a top-secret whistleblower report sent to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has exposed an intricate web of corruption, nepotism, and embezzlement of public funds in Kakamega County.

The explosive 11-page document, exclusively obtained by Kenya Insights, details systematic looting of county resources allegedly orchestrated by Governor Fernandes Barasa, Chief Officer for Finance Jeophita June Mwajuma, and Chief Officer for Medical Services Dr. David Anekeya Alila.

County on Its Knees

According to the whistleblowers, who identify themselves as employees of the Kakamega County Government, the county is “virtually on its knees” despite the National Government being prompt in remitting funds to the devolved unit.

“There are no drugs in hospitals, no fuel, insurance, allowances, and the medical cover recently purchased is suspect because hospitals keep rejecting the MTIBA thing,” reads part of the report addressed to EACC Chairman Dr. David Oginde.

The whistleblowers express little faith in investigative agencies, alleging that previous reports to EACC’s Bungoma office resulted in officers merely “taking tea with the Governor” after which matters would go silent.

Pension Funds and Statutory Deductions Not Remitted

One of the most alarming revelations in the report is that the County Government has not been remitting workers’ pension fund deductions to CPF (County Pension Fund) for the entire year 2024, despite deducting these amounts from workers’ pay slips.

Similarly, statutory deductions including workers’ bank loans, SACCO loans, and insurance policies are being deducted monthly from employees but not being remitted to the respective institutions.

Ghost Projects and Secret Office

The report alleges that Chief Officer Finance Jeophita June Mwajuma runs a private office at Kenfico estate in Kakamega where “cooked paperwork and figures of all ghost projects” are processed. This office is reportedly operated mainly by an accountant named Silvester Amurono.

“The payments of these ghost projects are given priority over genuine projects that are never paid at all,” the whistleblowers allege.

World Bank Funds Misappropriated

In perhaps one of the most serious claims, the report details how Ksh 293 million meant for the FLLOCA (Financing Locally-Led Climate Action) project was allegedly stolen, prompting the World Bank to flag the misappropriation.

“The money was lost through companies that had not done any other service in the county; they were just formed specifically to loot this money,” states the report.

Upon discovery of the fraud, the sponsors allegedly indicated they would stop funding any other project and demanded the money back. This prompted Chief Officer Finance Mwajuma to write to the National Treasury promising to repay the amount in three installments.

The whistleblowers further claim that Cabinet Secretary for Treasury John Mbadi was invited to Kakamega on January 17, 2025, under the pretense of inspecting the Savona water project, and was allegedly given Ksh 7 million “for him to give green light for the county to continue with World Bank projects.”

Hospital Funds Diverted

Among the most shocking revelations is the alleged systematic looting of funds meant for level four hospitals. According to the report, excess disbursement of AIE (Authority to Incur Expenditure) funds to these facilities is commonplace, with medical officers in charge instructed to withdraw the excess and return it to Chief Officer Dr. Alila David.

“Last year Ksh 10 million, Ksh 10 million, and Ksh 6 million was withdrawn from Malava, Butere, and Iguhu hospital respectively, the same was handed to Dr. Ailah David on 20th October 2024,” the report states.

The medical officers in charge of these hospitals were allegedly rewarded with 10% of the amount withdrawn from each respective hospital.

Centralized Payment System

The whistleblowers claim that all county government payments have been centralized through the Chief Officer for Finance, an arrangement they describe as “a clear arrangement to swindle public funds.”

“Other accounting officers have no power to do so; it is like the whole county has one accounting officer the chief officer for finance,” the report states.

Undisclosed Bank Accounts and Suspicious Withdrawals

The document alleges that hundreds of millions of shillings have been withdrawn from undisclosed County accounts at Co-op Bank and KCB by individuals working under the Chief Officer Finance, including Silvester Amurono, Peter Kirui, Edward Odongo Konditty, and Jacob Maiyo.

The whistleblowers suggest that a lifestyle audit should be conducted on these officers who “have amassed huge wealth within a short time which doesn’t match their legitimate income.”

Private Account Transfers

In one of the most blatant allegations of fraud, the report claims that public money is transferred from County accounts to a private account “in a Luo name,” from which money is then wired to individuals close to the Governor. This account is allegedly operated by Edward Achola Konditty, an officer in the finance department.

Office Renovation Scandal

According to the whistleblowers, in October 2023, the office of the Governor was demolished for repairs “hardly two years into existence” and work worth Ksh 35 million was awarded to a contractor “who was not competitively sourced.”

“There was no advertisement for the job made, no bidders but of which the Head of Supplies was forced to work backwards by the Governor,” states the report.

The document claims that despite the incident being reported to both EACC and DCI in real-time, nothing was done, as officers from the Bungoma office “could just come visit Governor’s office and thereafter disappear.”

Judicial Interference Allegations

In a disturbing twist, the whistleblowers implicate Justice Aggrey Muchelle, alleging he “plays the role of a hatchet boy for Governor Barasa” and was used as a conduit to bribe three judges who heard and determined a County appeal case against the Public Service Board.

“He played a key role in transferring of the Judge who was handling the matter at Kakamega high court, Labor and employment relations court,” the report claims.

The whistleblowers allege that Justice Aggrey Muchelule was given Ksh 50 million to ensure the County wins the case, and that Governor Barasa attended Justice Muchelule’s wedding last year in Eldoret where he allegedly gave Ksh 1 million.

DCI Officer Implicated

The report also implicates a DCI officer named Geoffrey Muhanda Mwera, claiming he serves as a link between Governor Barasa and Justice Aggrey Muchelule in “their corrupt deals.”

According to the whistleblowers, this officer drafted a “malicious petition” to impeach the Kakamega County Public Service Board, for which he and his brother allegedly received rewards of Ksh 6 million and Ksh 3 million respectively.

Medical Department Irregularities

The report alleges that Ksh 143 million was paid by Dr. Alila to a company that “supplied air in the medical department” in the last financial year. Another Ksh 43 million was allegedly paid for “ghost work” from the Department of Health.

When the Assembly committee for Health attempted to investigate, they were allegedly “quickly compromised.”

Nepotism and Conflict of Interest

The whistleblowers detail several instances of alleged nepotism, including road maintenance contracts awarded to the Governor’s brother Justus, nephew Fabian Musamiah, and sister.

The report also claims that the Governor’s brother-in-law George Wanjala was shortlisted for the position of Director Education Support, and a sister to his last wife, identified as SITIENEI, was employed in the county liaison office in Nairobi.

Cash Stored in Governor’s Home

In one of the most sensational claims, the whistleblowers allege that Governor Barasa has a safe built in his Harambee Home in Matungu subcounty “where money is ferried to in bags and at times airlifted by a chopper to Nairobi.”

“It is believed that he has another safe housed in Nairobi in one of his houses,” the report adds.

Medical Cover Irregularities

The whistleblowers question why the county procured a medical cover for staff through a broker, claiming the MTIBA system “is not working at all” and staff are spending personal money on their medical bills.

High-Level Connections

The report makes a startling claim about links between the County Government and Farouk Kibet, a prominent political figure. According to the whistleblowers, whenever the county receives capitation, Kibet allegedly “flies in choppers from Wilson airport to Governor Barasa’s home in Matungu where he normally flies back to Nairobi with bags of money.”

Fictitious Fertilizer Scheme

The whistleblowers claim that in the last supplementary budget, Ksh 700 million was allocated in the Ministry of Agriculture for buying subsidized fertilizer and farm inputs “that never happened.”

Drugs Procurement Scandal

One of the most recent allegations pertains to an April 17, 2025, event where Governor Barasa allegedly launched the distribution of essential drugs and non-pharmaceuticals to level two and three health facilities worth Ksh 50 million in Malava.

According to the whistleblowers, “only one lorry that the governor opened was loaded with the purported essential drugs and non-pharmaceuticals which were not even drugs but water drips, gloves sterilization tapes and syringes collected from Matungu level four hospital, Butere level four hospital, and Malava level four hospital, the rest of the lorries were empty.”

Mysterious Night Movement

The report raises questions about “what consignment was moved from governor residence in Matungu on 18th April, 2025, at around 00200 hours at night in a lorry truck towards Kisumu direction.”

The whistleblowers conclude their explosive document with an appeal to the EACC Chairman: “This is our final appeal to you that we as workers of Kakamega county hope that you will finally come to save Kakamega County from collapsing because it is already on its knees.”

Our Analysis

Kenya Insights has spent the past week verifying key elements of this explosive whistleblower report.

Multiple sources within the Kakamega County Government have independently corroborated several of the allegations, particularly those relating to the non-remittance of statutory deductions, the centralization of payment systems, and the questionable medical insurance scheme.

Financial records obtained by our investigative team confirm unusual patterns of expenditure in the departments mentioned, particularly in Health and Agriculture.

Public procurement documents show discrepancies in contract awards that align with the allegations of nepotism and irregular procurement.

When contacted for comment, Governor Barasa’s office dismissed the allegations as “baseless claims driven by political malice” and stated they would respond comprehensively “at the appropriate time.”

Chief Officer Finance Jeophita June Mwajuma and Chief Officer for Medical Services Dr. David Anekeya Alila did not respond to our repeated requests for comment.

The EACC acknowledged receipt of the whistleblower report but declined to comment on “ongoing investigations.”

As this story continues to develop, Kenya Insights calls upon all relevant investigative agencies to act swiftly on these serious allegations to safeguard public resources and restore governance integrity in Kakamega County. Multi-Million-Corruption-Scandal-Exposed-in-Leaked-Kakamega-County-Whistleblower-Report