After Margaret Nyakang'o's shocking revelation on Tuesday, the Consumer Federation of Kenya (COFEK) is asking Parliament to begin having her removed as Controller of the Budget.
Nyakang'o is just as guilty as former National Treasury CS Ukur Yatani in the illicit withdrawal of Sh15.5 billion before the August 9, 2022 elections, according to Cofek Secretary General Stephen Mutoro, who testified before the Public Petitions Committee.
In addition, Mutoro urged Parliament to support the creation of a judicial commission to investigate the money Kenya loses during political campaigns.
"We need to investigate the Ukur-Nyakangó fraud further. We must also ascertain the extent of the issue and the sums Kenyans have lost, he told the committee."
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According to Mutoro, if Nyakang'o had refused to approve the transaction, the illicit removal of Sh15.5 billion would not have occurred.
She is a contributor to the issue rather than a whistleblower. She should have determined why the withdrawal was taking place and whether the threshold existed. He added that she ought to have investigated if Yatani was telling the truth about his conversation with the President.
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On Tuesday, Nyakang'o informed the committee that she was under pressure to approve the Sh15.2 billion released just five days before the general election on August 9.
She described to a parliamentary committee how the former Treasury CS repeatedly referred to President Uhuru Kenyatta to pressure her into approving the payments.
Since then, Yatani has retaliated and called her accusations "false, spiteful, and actionable in law."
"This portrayal is slanderous and defamatory to my character and my many years of professional service to the public. I've told my lawyers to research her statements and offer me suggestions for a case against her personally," he stated.
On Thursday, Mutoro added that Parliament should abolish independent commissions and offices since they provide no value for the money spent.
These impartial panels and offices are nothing more than money-suckers. They are worthless to Kenyans, he declared.
Mutoro requested that the committee provide the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions with specific instructions to conduct in-depth investigations into the financial transactions made by the Jubilee administration during its final days in office.
"The committee should also advise that a special audit take place for July through September 2022", he continued.
"Mutoro added that Nyakan'go's claim that she was coerced was a ridiculous joke".
"The most absurd joke of the century is that she was coerced. She should have hurried to her office, quit her job, or travelled to the closest police station. There was no gun in the Whatsapp communications", he claimed.
According to Cofek, the previous administration spent Sh55 billion that needed to be budgeted.
According to a document sent to MPs by the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) during their induction, Treasury distributed the funds without the National Assembly's consent.
The presentations show that Sh23.1 billion has already been deposited with the various state departments and government ministries.
Mutoro said that the action amounts to blatant corruption in a petition to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Serah Kioko.
