The National Assembly has opened a probe into the alleged mismanagement of Sh9.4 billion on the eCitizen platform, summoning seven heads of key entities to explain how funds were diverted to private firms.
In a session on Wednesday, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by Butere MP Tindi Mwale, said the investigation will focus on the licensing and approvals that allowed these entities to collect public funds and whether there was any irregular diversion.
Mwale made the announcement when the committee engaged Principal Secretaries Chris Kiptoo (Treasury), Belio Kipsang (Immigration and Citizen Services) and John Tanui (ICT and Digital Economy) over the Auditor General’s Special Audit Report on the platform.
According to the report, Sh9.4 billion was irregularly channelled from the system, with details indicating that the funds were diverted and paid to private entities.
The committee has now invited heads of seven entities, including the Office of the Attorney General and Equity Bank, to explain how the funds were moved out of the system. Other entities of interest are Pesa Flow Limited, Goldrock Limited, Olive Media Limited, Webmasters Kenya and Electronic Citizen Solutions.
“We expect the entities to give their side of the story and explain how they were licensed to collect funds from Kenyans, how approvals were granted, the amounts they are holding, and any possible diversion,” Mwale said.
The Auditor General’s report further raised concerns about control of the platform, warning that the government does not have full oversight and instead relies on a vendor.
“Noting that the majority of government services are provided through the platform, control by the vendor creates a single point of failure,” the report, tabled in the House on April 2, 2025, reads in part.
However, during the session, National Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo assured the committee that the platform is fully owned by the government under a handover agreement signed in January 2023.
He explained that he, alongside officials from the State Department of ICT and the State Department of Immigration, executed the agreement.
“As per the agreement, the vendor agreed to completely and unconditionally hand over the eCitizen platform to the Government of Kenya,” Kiptoo said.
The officials revealed that the platform has recorded sharp revenue growth, rising from an average of Sh60 million to about Sh600 million daily.
To strengthen oversight, Kiptoo said draft regulations governing the platform have been finalised and will soon be submitted to stakeholders for validation. He emphasised that the platform has also been designated as Critical Information Infrastructure, highlighting its importance to national security.
Officials told the committee that efforts to enhance system integrity, accountability and transparency remain a priority through continued collaboration among government agencies.
