Nairobi Governor Dr Evans Kidero, wife Dr Susan Akello Mboya who is challenging the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC)’s decision to investigate her alongside her husband over alleged graft in the county government which is not her employer.
BY THOMAS KARIUKI
A landmark petition has been filed at the High Court seeking to protect the rights of married women from unfair treatment more so where their spouses are under investigation for offences like corruption.
In a suit filed on Friday April 8 the wife to Nairobi Governor Dr Evans Kidero, Dr Susan Akello Mboya, is challenging the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC)’s decision to investigate her alongside her husband over alleged graft in the county government which is not her employer.
Dr Mboya wants investigations launched by EACC against her declared unconstitutional as they are tantamount to discrimination on the basis of sex and marital status.
“The EACC victimized me for being the Governor’s wife when it sought court orders to investigate my bank account at Commercial Bank of Africa in relation to an ongoing probe against Dr Kidero,” explained Dr Mboya in her court papers.
She further argues that EACC has no evidence implicating her in corruption and has subjected her to illegal and unnecessary investigations merely because she is married to Dr Kidero who at one point transferred the sum of Sh5 million to her account.
She explains the money was to be used to settle domestic expenses and pay for a family holiday and for someone with her level of income this should not amount to an economic crime.
Dr Mboya says the EACC based their allegations on the fact that they have noted “tens of millions of shillings” going through her account but never bothered to find out the sources of her income. She furthers adds she does not have access to her husband’s accounts.
In the court papers, Dr Mboya describes herself as a financially independent woman who has built her wealth over the years through hard work and prudent investment in real estate and stocks. She also says she earns millions of shillings annually in salaries and bonuses as a senior executive working for a global multinational.
She also argues that she is a highly respected philanthropist who has worked tirelessly to mentor and uplift the well-being of thousands of girls on the African continent by enabling them to access education.
“I am a victim of my sex and that is why I am being subjected to these illegal investigations. I am a suspect of economic crimes by the mere fact that I am the wife of Dr Kidero and I am a millionaire,” states Dr Mboya in her court papers.
Dr Mboya has named the EACC, Director of Public Prosecutions, Inspector General of Police, Attorney General and the Chief Magistrates Court at Makadara as respondents in the petition. She has also named two EACC investigators Mulki Abdul Umar and Dennis Josek Mare as respondents.
She further stated that EACC violated her right to privacy in seeking search warrants against her account at Commercial Bank of Africa yet she is not a public officer within the definition of Article 260 of the Constitution of Kenya. She wants the search warrants quashed saying they were obtained illegally.
EACC’s decision to investigate her, she further explained, has adversely affected her reputation as a philanthropist yet she has dedicated her life to championing the rights of women and girls.
“My being painted as a benefactor of acts of corruption and economic crimes violates my dignity contrary to Article 28 of the Constitution and further taints my otherwise unblemished reputation. Donor funds that are assigned to the various charitable organizations that I run and manage are likely to be withdrawn as a result of casting doubt on my integrity,” she states in court papers.
She further argues that in failing to notify her of its intention to obtain search warrants, EACC violated her constitutional right to fair administrative action as enshrined in Article 47 of the Constitution.
Dr Mboya says she is willing to supply whatever information EACC needs provided the anti-graft body specifies what they are investigating.
