EACC report says corruption is rife at Kenya's borders

EACC Deputy Secretary Michael Mubea

NAIROBI: Immigration officials at Kenya’s border points extort money for services offered for free, an official anti-graft report has revealed.

The report also reveals that some immigration officials collude with foreigners to gain entry into or exit the country without the relevant papers.

The report also revealed the country’s Points of Entry (POE) are manned by idlers and brokers who act as money changers and clearing agents on behalf of immigration officers.

Even when arrested, the brokers are usually released without charges as they allegedly work in cahoots with Government employees.

The report by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) looked into the service delivery systems, policies, procedures and practices at Kenya’s Points of Entry.

Entries examined were Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Moi International airport, Mombasa, Eldoret International Airport, Wilson Airport, and Ukunda Airstrip.

Others are Namanga, Lunga Lunga and Malaba border points.

Carried out between March and May 2015, the report examined all the relevant Government agencies with linkages to POE among them Kenya Revenue Authority(KRA), Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), Department of Immigration, Kenya Airports Authority (KPA), and the Kenya Airport Police Unit.

FREE OF CHARGE

According to the report, visitors from Tanzania to Kenya were being charged at least Sh200 to have their documents stamped. Stamping is supposed to be done free of charge.

The team of investigators from EACC encountered instances where documents used to clear children are not in line with those prescribed by the law.

In one instance, an immigration officer was spotted by undercover EACC investigators using a clinic card to help a child exit.

“Some persons enter the country and attempt to register for IDs then use the waiting cards to exit the country,” reads the report.

EACC Deputy Secretary Michael Mubea said some of the commission’s officers posing as visitors were asked to pay Sh5,000 and have their yellow fever vaccination cards processed.

“No country can be better than its systems and our focus is on those systems,” said Mubea during the launch of the report.

The report was prompted by complains from members of the public concerning how immigration officers conduct their duties. EACC boss Halakhe Waqo directed all agencies involved to come up with an action plan in four weeks.