The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) have presented Ksh2 billion to the National Treasury to help with the fight against COVID-19 in the country.
President Uhuru Kenyatta had on Monday directed the National Treasury to utilize the Ksh2 billion of already recovered corruption proceeds to support the most vulnerable members of the society who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
DPP Noordin Haji and EACC boss Twalib Mbarak said on Tuesday that the funds were part of recovered proceeds of crime such as corruption and money laundering.
The Ksh2 billion dummy cheque from the two was presented to Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani.
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Haji said the prosecution fund established last year had recovered at least Ksh 2.9 billion, adding that the Ksh2 billion was part of the money.
“We have various institutions dealing with corruption. A lot more money is out there but because cases are not complete, we can’t use it. We have to wait for the cases to be complete,” said Haji.
Oh his part, Mbarak said, “This money is a product of plea bargaining. There are some cases ongoing, we can’t use the money because of pending appeals. But we are confident we will recover this money.”
DPP Noordin Haji has handed over a cheque of Ksh 2 billion from the Prosecution Fund Account to the Cabinet Secretary National Treasury Ukur Yattani to boost government efforts in the fight against #COVID19KE. #KomeshaCorona pic.twitter.com/Kzba1ejgKP
— Office of The Director Of Public Prosecutions (@ODPP_KE) April 7, 2020
CS Yatani said the government was not leaving anything to chances in the war against COVID-19 adding that the ministry had received a pledge of Ksh.7 billion from the Sports fund as well as other individuals, organizations and State agencies.
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“We are revising the budget and we won’t spare any item. We are suspending some projects to address the current situation and recovery of the income. We are cutting on some expenditure that we can push to the next financial year,” he said.
He added, “I may not be able to give you the specifics on the budget for Covid-19 because it’s a moving target, but the figures are massive. Some of these proposals are outrageous, we may not be able to finance them. Even with the prevailing circumstances, we must run a fiscally sound economy.”
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In a state of the nation address from State House on Monday, the President said the government is doing everything to cushion Kenyans from the unprecedented negative effects of COVID-19 on the economy.
The Head of State said that every shilling saved from salary cuts and allowances will be used for masks, personal protective equipment and other initiatives towards fighting the novel coronavirus.
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