Two Former Isiolo County Officials Arraigned Over Fraudulent Sh163.4 Million Payment

Two former Chief Officers of the Isiolo County Government have been charged in connection with the alleged theft of public funds amounting to Sh163.4 million through fraudulent payments for services that were never rendered.

The suspects, Giro Liban and Kenneth Turibu Maorwe, who served in the office of the governor, are accused of irregularly awarding a tender for car hire and transport services to a private company.

EACC, in a statement on Wednesday, revealed that investigations had uncovered a scheme to defraud the County Government through illegal procurement processes.

The two appeared before Chief Magistrate Lucy Mutai at the Isiolo Anti-Corruption Court on Tuesday, December 16, 2024, where they pleaded not guilty to eight counts of willful failure to comply with procurement laws and four counts of abuse of office.

“EACC commenced investigations into the matter after receiving allegations that the County Government of Isiolo was in the process of making a fraudulent payment of Sh163,377,754 to various suppliers for goods not delivered,” read the EACC statement.

The court granted each of the accused Sh1 million cash bail or an equivalent bond. The case will be mentioned on December 23, 2024, with hearings set for February 26–27, 2025.

EACC investigations revealed that the Isiolo County Government had contracted Dabasiti Contractors and Suppliers Ltd to supply food items and transport services. However, the procurement processes were initiated without any approved procurement plan or budget, violating established laws.

Despite the irregularities, the contractor later sued the county for unpaid bills totaling Sh8.4 million for transport services and Sh17 million for relief food, and obtained a summary judgment for the amounts owed.

To validate the pending bills, the County Government engaged both the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) and the Pending Bills Verification Task Force Committee (PBVC). Both entities classified the contractor’s debt as eligible. However, EACC noted that the County proceeded to settle the bills despite multiple irregularities in the procurement processes.