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Shadowy multi-million transactions cost Kidero foundation registration


A non-governmental organisation associated with Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero has been deregistered.

This comes two months after the NGOs Coordination Board suspended the The Evans Kidero Foundation and froze its bank account.

The board deregistered the foundation on Tuesday due to non-compliance to the NGOs Coordination Act and breaching the terms and conditions attached to their certificate of registration

“The Board has cancelled your registration under the said Act on the grounds that your organisation has breached the provisions of Regulation 24 read together with clause 5 of the terms and conditions attached to your registration certificate by failing to file annual returns,” the board’s executive director Fazul Mahamed said in a letter dated February 21, 2017.

He stated that the foundation conducted transactions involving millions of shillings despite having no known donor on record and opened and operated unauthorised bank accounts.

AUDIT ASSETS

Mr Mahamed further advised the Asset Recovery Agency to audit all assets under the foundation.

According to the NGO boss several senior employees of Nairobi county government were beneficiaries of the foundation, having received funds directly from the foundation’s Family Bank account.

“Several senior employees of the Nairobi County Government are also beneficiaries of the Foundation’s fund and it is not clear why County Government employees should be receiving funds from the Foundation,” he said.

The foundation also failed to file statutory financial returns annually “on the aggregate of funds (and) donations, nature of the funds, donor identity, sources of fund, assets acquired and general operations of the foundation”, said Mr Mahamed.

SIPHON MONEY

There had also been speculation and accusations that it was used as a front by the governor to siphon money from the county, an accusation Dr Kidero vehemently denied.

Dr Kidero’s son Ronald Odhiambo is the treasurer of the foundation while other key officials are the head the Nairobi County Public Service Board, Phillip Kungu Opondo, and Dr Kidero’s Chief of Staff George Wainaina Njogu.

Mr Wainaina had however come out to defend the foundation even after presented with evidence of a parallel bank account which he described as an anomaly.

“I am bitter that someone would make allegations that we run a foundation that is doing shaddy business while in fact I am the one funding it,” said Mr Wainaina adding that it was a transparent foundation with clear funding sources.