How money meant for the aged poor is ending up into wrong pockets

By JECKONIA OTIENO

Kenya: Frustration is growing among many of the elderly people signed up for a government cash transfer programme meant to provide a safety net for senior citizens.

They say the chaotic distribution of monthly payments causes needless inconvenience and could create avenues for fraud by rogue state officers. Elderly residents of Eregi Location, Kakamega County, who revealed the challenges they face to this writer, say their experiences may point to a nationwide scandal affecting tens of thousands of people.

In this year’s budget, the government set aside Sh13.4 billion for payments to special groups like orphaned and vulnerable children, the old and people living with disability. This is an increase of about 40 per cent from the previous year in the programme started in 2009 to provide social protection to these special groups.

However, the management problems that have plagued government cash transfer programmes persist.

Elderly people in Eregi, which has 550 beneficiaries signed up for transfers, complain of poor communication and questionable payment arrangements. The Sh2,000-a-month, they say, is paid once every two months.

Beneficiaries have no idea on which date they are supposed to get the money, with many of them missing out altogether. They say they call each other to spread the news when the money has come. This means that beneficiaries who are not informed by others often miss out on the money.

The payments are made through the post office system. For elderly people in Eregi, this means a trip to Chavakali, in the neighbouring Vihiga County, where a computerised registry can still throw up surprises.

Discrepancies

Shem Lumula, 80, one of the Eregi beneficiaries, once failed to get his money because his name was missing from the list. Not to be put down, the old man travelled to the Social Services office in Kakamega to complain.

He was informed that his name was on the list and he should go back to Chavakali. Differences between the Kakamega and Vihiga lists remain unexplained.

We were unable to reach Kakamega County government officials in charge of social services to get a comment. Ministry officials we spoke to say they are not aware of any discrepancies in the registers used.

Colleta Nyeleshe, 71, failed to get her share in March because her name “was not in the computer system”. But when she tried again after two months, her name was in the list of recipients once more.

“I received money only for the two months (that had just passed) and not the other two months that I had missed,” says Nyeleshe.

This begs the questions: Could someone have pocketed her money? Or was it lost in a bureaucratic bungle? How many more people have been affected? Could this be happening silently throughout the nation?

Rogue officials

The Standard on Saturday  followed the paper trail in Nyeleshe’s case and found that Sh4,000 had been paid out to someone else. There was a thumbprint under her name for the months she claims she was not paid yet, according to her, it is not her print and she had not signed anywhere or received any money because her name was not in the system.

All beneficiaries in Eregi use thumbprints to ‘sign’ for their money. This, some say, applies whether they know how to write or not. Those we spoke to also complain that the column stating the amount they will get is usually blocked from their view as they sign.

While in most cases they get Sh4,000 for two months, some say they get less after being forced to part with some of the cash in bribes. “When we get back to the village, we ask each other what we got. Some tell you Sh3,500, others Sh3,000, yet others even Sh2,500. They say the money is deducted to pay those who fix them in the queues so that they do not wait for long,” a beneficiary said.

The District Gender and Social Development Officer, Leah Nyaga, said there will be an investigation to ascertain who signed for the money. Nyaga says her office does not deal directly with the money, meaning somebody at the post office must be involved.

“Whenever a person misses their pay for a particular month, they are entitled to get the money when the next payday comes,” says Nyaga. “This means that they get double or triple what others get depending on how many months they have missed.”

Locals suspect rogue officials at the post offices may be lying about their names being off the lists so that the missed months accumulate to a huge amount. Beneficiaries are then tricked into signing for the large amount before being paid just Sh2,000 or Sh4,000. They cited the over-bearing presence of three individuals on every payday as suspicious. The three are local chief Eugene Mwashi; a woman widely referred to as karani (secretary) and a political aspirant who works as a pastor. All of them are members of the committee that identified beneficiaries for the programme. Villagers claim the chief openly threatens beneficiaries he will take them off the list if they complain about his activities.

Nyaga says the three have no business at the pay centre.

“The location committee members have no business in those centres unless called upon by staff handling the money,” she states. “Even then, there must be a genuine reason.”

Mwashi, the Eregi location chief, admits he goes to the post office on payday but insists this is only to fight for those who might be overlooked.

He says claims that he interferes in the process are lies fabricated to tarnish his name.

“Some people are making matters personal yet I have been the one who has been fighting hard to get more old people into the cash transfer system,” states Mwashi. “Where people miss their money for one reason or the other, I tell them to let me know so that I can follow it up with the relevant offices.”

On the use of thumbprints, the chief argues that most of the old people cannot write, hence the high number of thumbprints.

 He says he welcomes any investigations into the payments at the post office, saying he has nothing to fear.