Governor admits altering Sh8billion Turkana County budget

By Kurian Musa

TURKANA, KENYA: It has emerged that Turkana Governor Josephat Nanok altered Sh8billion approved budget estimates submitted to the Controller of Budgets.

Nanok through his Lawyers admitted at the High Court on Monday that the budget was altered.

Justice Mumbi Ngugi heard that the altered budget was detected by the controller of budgets then sent back for correction by the Turkana County Assembly in September 2013.

The case before the judge has listed the Governor, the controller of budget Ms Agnes Odhiambo and the Attorney General as respondents.

Mumbi was told that a resident of Turkana County Mr Pius Ewoton noted the anomaly and raised the complaint over the inflated budget estimates by over Sh 500 Million.

In a turn of events, both the controller of budgets and Mr Nanok admitted that the approved budget estimates submitted by the governor were erroneous.

Governor Nanoks lawyer Akoth Lumumba told Justice Ngugi that, “it is true the document forwarded to the controller of budget had been altered but it was corrected last year.”

She said the true budget estimates were sent back to the county assembly where they were debated in a fresh way in September 2013 and was adopted.

Ms Lumumba submitted that the case has been overtaken by events since the money in contest; the Lawyer said has since been allocated and spent.

But, Mr Ewoton who filed case is seeking orders to compel the top government officers to furnish him the actual County revenue fund warrant that was handed over to the controller by the governor on June 30 2013.

In court records, there are two warrants forwarding the approved budget signed by Mr Nanok to the controller of budget office.

“We have been denied the documents by the controller of budget and we see that there is mischief in the approved budget,”  Mr Nyakundi for Ewoton told the court.

The case will be ruled on July 4, 2014.