Retired President Kibaki Accused of Irregularly Awarding Scholarships to His Grandchildren to Study Abroad

The National Assembly Public Accounts Committee is conducting an inquiry on why retired President Mwai Kibaki used his power to award expensive scholarships to his grandchildren to study abroad.

On Monday, the House committee asked former Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura to explain circumstances leading to the award of the scholarships to the former President's kin.

Appearing before the team, Muthaura defended Kibaki who awarded the scholarships to two of his grandchildren studying at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia.

Muthaura explained that Kibaki was trying to assist his nephew, Philip Githinji pay college fees after he lost his job with Oil Libya. Githinji’s children, Ian Nderitu and Sandra Njeri were pursuing Engineering and Architecture degrees at the Australian institution.

“The President wrote to me on this matter and he later varied his earlier communication verbally to have the second student included. I knew Githinji as a nephew to the former President,” Muthaura told the Opiyo Wandayi-led committee.

Muthaura further explained that the amount of money paid was high because the two went on to take second degrees right after completing the first one.

“The students did their first degree and proceeded for the second degree. That is why the amount is a bit high.”

However, the House committee questioned why the former President used taxpayers cash to help his struggling relatives.

“We assist our extended family through our own pockets but not from public coffers,” Rarieda Member of Parliament Otiende Amollo stated.

Wandayi asked, “Don’t you think that a case where a state officer uses his or her power in leadership to benefit their relatives is an abuse of office?”

Former Higher Education Principal Secretary Crispus Kiamba approved the scholarships after receiving a letter from Kibaki’s private secretary Nick Wanjohi.

“That was presidential discretion to award scholarships. The president, as the Chief Executive of the country, has a lot of discretion on budget,” Muthaura added.