The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) has dismissed a letter that had been circulating across social media platforms alleging to invite Deputy President William Ruto to testify in the multi-billion Arror, Kimwarer dams scandal.
In a statement on Friday, October 22, 2021, the ODPP clarified that the second in command had not been summoned to testify in the case.
The letter as seen by Nairobileo.co.ke, alleged that DP Ruto was supposed to testify in the case as a state witness and shed light on the scandal. The letter raised eyebrows among members of the public, prompting a response from the DPP Noordin Haji-led state department.
The ODPP urged members of the public to ignore the letter, terming it fake news.
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The fake letter circulated online, alleging that the ODPP had summoned DP William Ruto to testify in the dams scandal. |Courtesy| Twitter|
"The above letter circulating on social media is fake. We wish to state that no such letter has been written in relation to the Arror and Kimwarer case," the DPP stated.
The letter was copied to President Uhuru Kenyatta and took note of the DP's sentiments that allegedly only Ksh7 billion was in question in the scandal.
In 2019, DP Ruto dismissed reports that Ksh21 billion had been lost in the dams scandal, adding that the amount in question was Ksh7 billion which he said was accounted for.
“You have heard for example that the government has lost Ksh21 billion in the Arror and Kimwarer dams which is a flat lie. The money in question is about Ksh7billion and for every coin that has been paid, we have a bank guarantee,” the DP stated.
“And, therefore, the correct information must be used as we target the war on graft so that we can nail the true accused,” he added.
While urging the relevant authorities to expedite investigations into the matter, DP Ruto noted that it is important to relay the correct information to the public, arguing that failure to do so creates room for doubt.
“Sometimes when we say Ksh9 billion has been lost and then when we go to court it is Ksh100 million, the public is asking, what happened to Ksh8.1 billion and we shoot ourselves in the foot. The correct information must be used as we target the struggle against graft so that we can reel in the true culprits,” he stated.
Last week, DPP Haji sought to amend the charge sheet against former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich in the Arror and Kimwarer dams case.
The ODPP sought to combine Rotich's case with that of former Kerio Valley Development Authority (KVDA) Managing Director, David Kimosop, following a review of the two graft cases.
The amendments seek to drop the number of accused people from 18 to 9 and reduce the counts from 40 to 30 in the two matters.
