Sh1 million bank freeze reveals struggle to recover NYS cash

The State has frozen less than Sh1 million from a bank account that received millions from National Youth Service (NYS), dimming hopes of recovering billions stolen from the agency.

Businessman Anthony Wamiti Makara through his company Arkroad Holdings is believed to have received Sh60 million alongside two other companies for supply of goods and services at the NYS without tendering But the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) has obtained orders to freeze Mr Makara’s bank account at National Bank that has about Sh800,000.

This cements the trend where the State is struggling to locate funds wired to accounts of more than a dozen businessmen from the NYS on fraudulent tendering.

“An order is hereby issued preserving and prohibiting from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using and dealings in respect of funds held in A/C No. 01285120692700 in the name of Arkroad Holdings Limited held at National Bank of Kenya for a period of 90 days,” said ARA Director Muthoni Kimani in the Kenya gazette. Mr Makara’s company was flagged among those that were awarded contracts without participating in the tendering of goods and services.

Billions of shillings were stolen from the NYS through fictitious invoices and multiple payments on one supplier invoice. But a small share of stolen funds have been frozen.

The Ngirita family, for example, received Sh361 million from the NYS between November 2015 and April 2018, but the State managed to trace properties of less than Sh100 million. Businessman James Thuita Nderitu and firms associated with him received Sh1.61 billion from the NYS in the 11 months to November 2017, but onlay Sh33.8 million was left after the State froze the bank accounts.