The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has successfully recovered over Ksh.39 million in unlawfully paid allowances from two National Treasury and Planning officials, following a High Court ruling.
The Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Division of the High Court in Nairobi found that Robert Theuri Murage and Doris Nafula Simiyu received the funds fraudulently between January 2020 and June 2022.
The payments were made under irregular and unauthorized categories such as facilitation, taskforce, entertainment, extraneous, and undefined allowances.
In a judgment delivered on June 4, 2025, Lady Justice L.M. Njuguna ruled that the allowances violated guidance issued by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) and had no legal basis.
“The Defendants, in receiving the allowances, knew or had every reason to believe they were not entitled to them but proceeded to receive the money. This court would not hesitate to find that the Defendants received the allowances fraudulently and illegally,” said Justice Njuguna.
The court emphasized that all payments had been made without the required SRC approval, in direct breach of established compensation guidelines.
Following the ruling, Mr. Murage was ordered to refund a total of Ksh.20,318,000, comprising Ksh.11,078,601 forfeited from his Equity Bank account and Ksh.9,239,398.17 to be paid in cash.
Ms. Simiyu was directed to repay Ksh.18,862,000, including Ksh.8,953,988.74 seized from her National Bank account, with a balance of Ksh.9,908,011.26 to be settled in cash.
The EACC welcomed the ruling, stating it reaffirms the binding nature of SRC’s advisory role under Article 230 of the Constitution.
Citing precedent from the Court of Appeal, the Commission noted that failure to adhere to SRC’s directives renders such payments illegal and mandates full recovery.
The amounts will accrue interest at court rates until fully recovered.
