IGG OFFICE ABETTING CORRUPTION â€" PADER BOSS
Feb 11, 2009
THE Pader district chairperson has accused some Inspectorate of Government officials of foot-dragging in investigating corruption cases.
BY BARBARA AMONG
THE Pader district chairperson has accused some Inspectorate of Government officials of foot-dragging in investigating corruption cases.
Peter Odok W’Oceng has now appealed to local government minister Kahinda Otafiire to step in and probe corruption in the northern district.
W’Oceng says he has, over the last two years, written five letters to the Inspector General of Government’s (IGG) office, drawing their attention to misappropriation of over sh8b from the district coffers, but that a counter-investigation was instead instituted against the district leadership. “We appealed to the IGG to help bring the culprits to book and recover the mismanaged funds but our appeal has never been responded to,†W’Oceng said in the October 6, 2008 letter to Otafiire.
In a separate letter to the director of the leadership code, W’Ocheng wants James Onying Penywii, the IGG director of operations, not to handle any investigations regarding Pader due to what he termed conflict of interest.
Penywii is a director of Best Services Limited, one of the construction companies W’Oceng wants investigated.
“Reading through the letters written to me by Penywii, I understand that the director of Best Services Company has a conflict of interest in the on-going struggle against corruption in Pader district,†he told Otafiire.
“We are convinced, as a district, that the IGG staff under Penywii are not carrying out any genuine investigation in Pader district. The investigators are there to defend corruption,†he wrote and vowed that the district would contest any report produced by the current probe team.
In a December 11, 2008 letter, W’Oceng said some officials from the IGG’s office had resorted to intimidating district officials. “The witch-hunting by the IGG in Pader has scared our district employees including the Police. We cannot do our work normally; our services to the people are being frustrated by the IGG activities. Please help the district,†he pleaded to Otafiire.
W’Oceng accuses Best Services of price inflation, influence peddling, forged claims and payment for works not executed. He says the company at one time forced the diversion of Universal Primary Education (UPE) funds to settle their bills. Best Service Limited has, over the years, won several contracts including the building of UPE schools.
W’Oceng cites a doctor’s house constructed by Best Services, which he doubts could have cost sh101m. He further alleges that there was no value for money for the sh57.6m claimed by the company for the renovation of Pader Health Centre III.
The district now wants Penywii and two other IGG officials only identified as Enyang and Nsubuga removed from the team probing corruption allegations in the district. Penywii admitted being a director in Best Services, but referred The New Vision to another director, Walter Ladwar.
When contacted, the IGG, Faith Mwondha, said she does not discuss their operations in the press.“If W’Oceng thinks that is the way to go, then, let him do it. We have several issues we are handling here,†Mwondha said.
Ladwar dismissed the allegations against Penywii as baseless because he is not involved in the day-to-day running of the company. He also says all their contracts were won without any influence-peddling.
“Those allegations are absolute rubbish,†he said. “We have not received any audit query in the district since we started working with the district in 2002. This business of us diverting UPE funds is ridiculous. As a contractor, I do my work, invoice you and it is up to you to pay me. I don’t care about your source of funds,†charged Ladwar.
Several correspondences seen by The New Vision show that the IGG is carrying out investigation into alleged mismanagement of district vehicles.
W’Oceng claims Pader has lost close to sh10b to corruption in form of ghost projects, shoddy work, inflated contract prices and forgery over the last five years. Pader featured prominently in last year’s education ministry report for allegedly diverting sh160m from UPE funds to procure the chairman’s vehicle.
At stake is sh8b which is unaccounted for, sh722m in salary advances and sh1.8b in excess expenditures. The district wants the former chief administrative officer, Leonard Opio; his assistant Charles Omwony and former chief finance officer Ambrose Ochen, investigated over salary advances to the tune of sh443.2m.
W’Oceng said they had written to the IGG after district attempts and an order from the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee to the CAO to recover the money had failed.
However, W’Oceng said the inspectorate had turned a deaf ear to their call and instead set up a counter investigation. W’Oceng is accused of using district funds to pay for repair of his personal vehicle. He denies the allegation.
Pader leaders say the investigation into the use of district vehicles defeats the original request for the IGG to investigate financial mismanagement and malpractices in appointments and salary payments.
THE Pader district chairperson has accused some Inspectorate of Government officials of foot-dragging in investigating corruption cases.
Peter Odok W’Oceng has now appealed to local government minister Kahinda Otafiire to step in and probe corruption in the northern district.
W’Oceng says he has, over the last two years, written five letters to the Inspector General of Government’s (IGG) office, drawing their attention to misappropriation of over sh8b from the district coffers, but that a counter-investigation was instead instituted against the district leadership. “We appealed to the IGG to help bring the culprits to book and recover the mismanaged funds but our appeal has never been responded to,†W’Oceng said in the October 6, 2008 letter to Otafiire.
In a separate letter to the director of the leadership code, W’Ocheng wants James Onying Penywii, the IGG director of operations, not to handle any investigations regarding Pader due to what he termed conflict of interest.
Penywii is a director of Best Services Limited, one of the construction companies W’Oceng wants investigated.
“Reading through the letters written to me by Penywii, I understand that the director of Best Services Company has a conflict of interest in the on-going struggle against corruption in Pader district,†he told Otafiire.
“We are convinced, as a district, that the IGG staff under Penywii are not carrying out any genuine investigation in Pader district. The investigators are there to defend corruption,†he wrote and vowed that the district would contest any report produced by the current probe team.
In a December 11, 2008 letter, W’Oceng said some officials from the IGG’s office had resorted to intimidating district officials. “The witch-hunting by the IGG in Pader has scared our district employees including the Police. We cannot do our work normally; our services to the people are being frustrated by the IGG activities. Please help the district,†he pleaded to Otafiire.
W’Oceng accuses Best Services of price inflation, influence peddling, forged claims and payment for works not executed. He says the company at one time forced the diversion of Universal Primary Education (UPE) funds to settle their bills. Best Service Limited has, over the years, won several contracts including the building of UPE schools.
W’Oceng cites a doctor’s house constructed by Best Services, which he doubts could have cost sh101m. He further alleges that there was no value for money for the sh57.6m claimed by the company for the renovation of Pader Health Centre III.
The district now wants Penywii and two other IGG officials only identified as Enyang and Nsubuga removed from the team probing corruption allegations in the district. Penywii admitted being a director in Best Services, but referred The New Vision to another director, Walter Ladwar.
When contacted, the IGG, Faith Mwondha, said she does not discuss their operations in the press.“If W’Oceng thinks that is the way to go, then, let him do it. We have several issues we are handling here,†Mwondha said.
Ladwar dismissed the allegations against Penywii as baseless because he is not involved in the day-to-day running of the company. He also says all their contracts were won without any influence-peddling.
“Those allegations are absolute rubbish,†he said. “We have not received any audit query in the district since we started working with the district in 2002. This business of us diverting UPE funds is ridiculous. As a contractor, I do my work, invoice you and it is up to you to pay me. I don’t care about your source of funds,†charged Ladwar.
Several correspondences seen by The New Vision show that the IGG is carrying out investigation into alleged mismanagement of district vehicles.
W’Oceng claims Pader has lost close to sh10b to corruption in form of ghost projects, shoddy work, inflated contract prices and forgery over the last five years. Pader featured prominently in last year’s education ministry report for allegedly diverting sh160m from UPE funds to procure the chairman’s vehicle.
At stake is sh8b which is unaccounted for, sh722m in salary advances and sh1.8b in excess expenditures. The district wants the former chief administrative officer, Leonard Opio; his assistant Charles Omwony and former chief finance officer Ambrose Ochen, investigated over salary advances to the tune of sh443.2m.
W’Oceng said they had written to the IGG after district attempts and an order from the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee to the CAO to recover the money had failed.
However, W’Oceng said the inspectorate had turned a deaf ear to their call and instead set up a counter investigation. W’Oceng is accused of using district funds to pay for repair of his personal vehicle. He denies the allegation.
Pader leaders say the investigation into the use of district vehicles defeats the original request for the IGG to investigate financial mismanagement and malpractices in appointments and salary payments.