Unknown private firms with unknown directors, totally operating from the shadows, purporting to run the Kenyan government’s eCitizen platform, pocketed at least 1.45 billion shillings in the year ended June 2024, deepening the never-ending mystery of who exactly owns eCitizen.
According to the Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, these companies’ owners are unknown and nobody is willing to reveal their names. Any attempt to want to know their identity is met with massive resistance and huge amounts of coverup according to Gathungu.
It has been rumored that eCitizen is owned by some powerful individuals within and without government who will crush anyone who dares reveal their identity, confirming that Kenya is, indeed, a mafia country.
The companies handled more than 11 million transactions during the year under review and earned 50 shillings from each transaction, pocketing a whopping 591.9 million shillings. They also pocketed 857 million shillings for the “maintenance of eCitizen.”
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The shocking revelation comes after it was revealed that at least Sh144 million collected through the e-Citizen platform by various government agencies cannot be accounted for, raising concerns over possible embezzlement amid the shift to digital services.
Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has raised alarm over discrepancies in the balances recorded by several ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) for the year ending June 2024. Most agencies have been using eCitizen to loot millions of shillings from Kenyans.
“Review of the e-citizen revenue accountability platform and the revenue statements revealed variances between balances reflected in the revenue statements, e-portal system and the ledger,” Gathungu said in the latest national government audit report.
The Ministry of Lands, led by Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome, recorded the largest discrepancy. The ministry collected Sh7.237 billion through e-Citizen but only had an actual balance of Sh7.1 billion at the end of the year, creating a shortfall of over Sh138 million.
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