EACC eyes Nyayo House following vacate notice

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) may be forced to move to Nyayo House in the city centre after it received a vacate notice from its current premise.

The commission is a tenant at Integrity Centre, Nairobi.

EACC Vice Chair Irene Keino said if the commission does not strike a deal with the owners of the building, they may be forced to seek temporary refuge at Nyayo House.

"If it comes to the worst, we will ask to be accommodated at Nyayo House where the Ministry of Energy is housed. We have inquired about space and been informed that the ministry is about to move to new offices," she said.

Reports indicate that EACC has been given up to June 30 to vacate the building after the owner said he had no intention of renewing the lease.

The notice is said to have been given by lawyers representing former Cabinet Minister Nicholas Biwott.

"We are instructed by the proprietor of the above building to notify you that the owner will not renew the lease on the basis of which you occupy the premises. As you are aware, your lease expires on June 30, 2015. The owner demands you deliver vacant possession of the property after full restoration at your cost as required in the lease," a letter from Mr Biwott's lawyer read in part.

The latest development compounds the woes of the anti-graft body even as the commission abandoned a plan to build headquarters worth Sh800 million in Karen in 2013.

EACC cancelled the construction on grounds that the location was far from the city centre, and it allegedly sought Sh1 billion to buy a building within the city centre.