Auditors miss lack of oversight in KFS imprests

Kenya Forest Service (KFS) Acting Chief Conservator of Forests Alex Lemarkoko had a tough time explaining why officials at the State corporation approved and later awarded themselves imprest payments amounting to Kes1.7 million contrary to the finance manual of the service and the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act of 2012.

Mr Lemarkoko told the Public Investment Committee led by Pokot South MP David Pkosing that it was common procedure for the officers to approve different expenditures including those that they are personally undertaking.

The committee, which turned away KFS two weeks ago for unsatisfactory responses were again dissatisfied with the responses demanding a detailed report on the issue. The committee was alarmed to discover that the Office of the Auditor Generals (OAG) had failed to include the anomaly in any other financial reports without plausible explanation.

They faulted the OAG for not doing its work effectively and as such helping in the sanitization of state officers who were misappropriating public funds.