Mr Timothy Muriuki (left) Nairobi Central Business District Association Chairman. Photo/FILE
By AGGREY MUTAMBO amutambo@ke.nationmedia.co
Posted Monday, March 19 2012 at 22:30
Posted Monday, March 19 2012 at 22:30
IN SUMMARY
- Business community wants follow-up on audit report that alleged illegal allocations at NHC
The business community has called for an investigation into corruption allegations at the National Housing Corporation.
The Nairobi Central Business District Association (NCBDA) on Monday demanded that the Inspectorate of State Corporations gets to the bottom of claims that NHC officials illegally allocated houses to themselves.
“The Inspectorate of State Corporations must state in public the steps they are taking (to prevent further abuse of office),” said NCBDA chairman Timothy Muriuki.
Mr Muriuki said the NHC has failed to provide low-cost housing because some individuals have been using their offices for personal gain.
“Instead of focusing on their core business, they are making themselves super landlords in Nairobi. If NHC cannot fulfil its mandate, it must be disbanded,” he said.
The NCBDA was responding to a recent audit report that revealed how senior managers at the NHC allocated houses to themselves, their relatives and friends.
“Procedures were altered arbitrarily to suit self-interests” of senior officials, the audit report says.
Some 78 officials were said to have allocated themselves 209 units in the eight housing schemes put up by the corporation around the country.
The NCBDA said it would also want the Board Audit Committee which prepared the report to investigate all the other housing schemes established by the NHC.
At the same time, the Consumers’ Federation of Kenya (Cofek) called for a public inquiry into how the houses were allocated.
“It is not enough to point fingers. There seems to be a bigger problem than meets the eye. We demand a public inquiry into the allocation of the houses dating back to 10 years,” said Cofek secretary general Stephen Mutoro.
On Monday, Housing permanent secretary Tirop Kosgey said that his ministry would wait for a report from the Efficiency Monitoring Unit before taking action.
“The Efficiency Monitoring Unit is at the NHC as we speak. The principle is that we hold onto the scanty details we have until their report is out,” he said in Nairobi.
The unit is based in the Prime Minister’s office and is charged with checking the use of public resources.
The report on the alleged corruption, released early this month, suggested that top officials be suspended pending further investigations.
It mentions some of the beneficiaries of the houses as Housing assistant minister Margaret Wanjiru, who has, however, said the report is not genuine.
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