Samburu Governor Moses Kasaine Lenolkulal in court | April 2019
The Governor who is believed to have misappropriated over Kshs. 2 billion shillings in fraudulent spending moved to court to have unconditional access to his accounts held at rogue KCB Bank.
This request was however, resisted by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), who on Wednesday asked the court to dismiss the application.
The embattled governor had sought unconditional access to four accounts held at Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) holding in excess of Kshs 121 million.
EACC believed the money held on the accounts are proceeds of graft.
The governor argued that he is not able to access his salary so as to cater for his personal and family subsistence, utilities, bills and other accruing expenses.
”There are reasonable grounds to suspect that the money was obtained as a result of corrupt conduct which they sufficiently demonstrated in its application and which the court found to be hence the orders issued,” read EACC’s response. Show me your friends and I'll tell you who you are
Joel Khisa, who is part of the investigating team, said Governor Lenolkulal had only attached payslips in support of his application, adding that the existence of a salary is not in dispute as it is only a minimum portion of the funds transacted through the accounts.
“The governor has not demonstrated to the court at all that the money in respect of which the discharge or variation are sought was not acquired as a resist of corrupt conduct,” he stated.
EACC is investigating allegations of corruption and economic crimes, bribery, conflict of interest amongst contractors and officials of the Samburu County Government where Ksh.1.6 billion was alleged to have been embezzled between January 31, 2013 and December 31, 2018.
“The burden of proving that the funds in the subject accounts were obtained legitimately is upon the applicant,” read court documents by EACC.
“The applicant has not demonstrated the source of the Ksh.121 million reasonably suspected to be the proceeds of corrupt conduct.”