PS Peter Mangiti and NYS boss Nelson Githinji plotted Sh695m theft, says official

Former National Youth Service Senior Deputy Director Adan Harakhe when he appeared before the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to answer questions on the loss of Sh695 million from the service at Parliament Buildings yesterday. (PHOTO: MOSES OMUSULA/ STANDARD)

A former top Government official yesterday described the role suspended Principal Secretary Peter Mangiti and ex-National Youth Service Director General Nelson Githinji allegedly played in a scheme to defraud the National Youth Service (NYS) of Sh695 million. 

Former Senior Deputy Director General of NYS Aden Harakhe narrated to the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) how the two senior officials allegedly masterminded the plot to steal the money.

They were allegedly backed by techn-savvy officers based at the Treasury's Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), who would hack into the system and make fictitious claims, helping companies allied to them swindle millions of shillings from the service.

The former NYS official told the committee that Mangiti and Githinji allegedly fought his efforts to stop the illegal payments amounting to Sh695.4 million.

He claimed the two urged him to "play ball" before resorting to threatening him once he stood his ground and cancelled the payments made into the IFMIS system under his name.

Mr Harakhe told the committee chaired by Rarieda MP Nicholas Gumbo that the IFMIS system had been hacked into and payments approved without his consent.

He claimed the PS at one point threatened him, telling him that if he failed to approve the payments, he would ensure that he was fixed as the person who authorised the payments.

Mr Harakhe said it was the PS who introduced him to Ben Gethi, another figure that has been adversely mentioned in the scandal, urging him to cooperate with the businessman to ensure that the money was paid to the companies that had laid claim to it for services delivered.

"On June 15, 2005, PS Mangiti called me and asked me to meet him at Nakumatt Junction where I found him with Ben. He warned me that they would fix me if I did not cooperate and allow the companies to get paid," said Mr Harakhe.

He caused laughter at the committee sitting as he recounted to members how Gethi, who he described as a young man, promised to show him how to make money in Nairobi as he had spent much of his time as an administrator in rural areas.

He said Gethi claimed to be Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich's "pointman".

"He told me that he also had connections with the CID boss and thus everything I did would be covered," Mr Harakhe told the committee at Parliament Buildings.