Former Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero has suffered a blow after the Court of Appeal allowed EACC to investigate his bank accounts.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission had obtained orders to probe Kidero's six bank accounts as part of investigations into irregular acquisitions of public funds during his term as Nairobi Governor and also as the managing director at Mumias Sugar Company.
However, Kidero moved to the Court of Appeal, arguing that EACC had overstepped its mandate, saying the anti-graft agency's work is only limited to enforcing Chapter Six of the Constitution and cannot investigate offences other than those not specified in that chapter.
But Court of Appeal judges Daniel Musinga, Asike Makhandia and Kantai ole Sankale dismissed his appeal, saying the questions Kidero raised had been dealt with by the Supreme Court in a separate case in 2019.
"It will therefore be seen that the Supreme Court has answered all the complaints raised by the appellant in the Memorandum of Appeal. The complaints have no merit. Consequently, this appeal is dismissed," the judges said in their judgment delivered on September 20.
The judgment means EACC is now free to pursue Kidero in the probe.
The agency wants to investigate Kidero's bank account opening documents, statements, cheques, deposit slips, money transfers, client instructions, and other information relating to the bank accounts.
Through lawyer Ochieng Oduol, Kidero had argued that the actions by the EACC had been undertaken without notice and as such did not comply with the law.