Cabinet nominee Aisha Jumwa to be arraigned in court in Sh20m CDF case
Public Service Cabinet Secretary nominee Aisha Jumwa will be arraigned in court on Friday in a case involving the misuse of Constituency Development Funds (CDF) amounting to Sh20 million.
This after the former Malindi MP failed to turn up in court on Monday to answer to charges linked to the case.
Her lawyer, Mr Jared Magolo told the court that Ms Jumwa had fallen ill after failing to win the Kilifi governorship race and doctors had advised her to take a bedrest. The lawyer produced a medical document in court indicating that Ms Jumwa was ill.
But Mombasa Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku issued a warrant of arrest for Ms Jumwa. The court said Ms Jumwa’s bond and cash bail risk being forfeited to the state if she failed to appear in court in person.
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Ms Jumwa and six others are accused of conspiracy to commit fraud through the payment of Sh19 million to Multiserve Contractors for tender number MLD/NG-CDF/01/2017/2018 of the Malindi NG-CDF.
In 2020, former Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) boss Mr George Kinoti issued an order for the MP’s arrest. She was subsequently arrested along with six officials of the NG-CDF office.
The six who were arrested then are CDF manager Mr Wachu Omar Abdala and officers; Ms Sophia Said, Bernard Kai, Ms Margaret Faith Kalume and Mr Robert Katana. Government engineer Mr Kennedy Otieno Onyango was also arrested.
The case is among those Ms Jumwa is facing that threaten to jeopardize her recent nomination as Cabinet Secretary for Public Service by President William Ruto.
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Ms Jumwa is among politicians aligned to Kenya Kwanza Alliance who were nominated for Cabinet positions after losing in the August 9 General Election.
Ms Jumwa, a die-hard and vocal supporter of Dr Ruto, failed to clinch the Kilifi gubernatorial seat after garnering 65,893 votes against ODM candidate Gideon Mungaro’s 143,773 votes
Should she be approved by Parliament as the Public Service and Gender CS, Ms Jumwa will join the top ranks of Dr Ruto’s key point persons in Coast, a region considered one of the political bedrocks of ODM party leader Raila Odinga.
Others are Senate Speaker Amason Kingi and former Kwale governor Salim Mvurya, who is the Mining Cabinet nominee.
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