Punish health funds looters

This was bound to happen. Foreign donors to the Covid-19 pandemic campaign are not amused about the blatant theft, misappropriation, misallocation and misuse of the funds they have provided to fight the health scourge in Kenya. And they have made it known that they will not condone such impunity.

The Global Fund, a major source of financial support for programmes aimed at combating diseases in Kenya, and across the world, has announced that it will no longer provide grants due to the corruption in the health sector.

The Sh40 billion to be withheld over the graft claims could have gone a long way in helping curb the spread of the deadly virus.

The authorities must realise that unleashing violence against Kenyans protesting against the mismanagement of the Covid-19 funds sends a negative message to the same donors.

It is that the government, which is violently breaking up the peaceful demonstrations against the greedy officials, is trying to cover up something.

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has, in response to an exposé by NTV, insisted that the ministry can account for all the funds provided by the donors. So why brutalise protesters?

Another tactic that is not working is the attempt to discredit the sources of media accounts on the looting of funds. There is clearly something terribly wrong with the management of the funds allocated for critical use against the grave health risk.

The Global Fund, which also supports HIV, tuberculosis and malaria programmes, says it will henceforth provide only medical supplies.

However, even this is not foolproof. Some donations of PPEs have also been diverted and stolen. The authorities have badly let down fellow Kenyans by failing to properly manage and account for resources meant to protect them from the pandemic. Suspending a few officials won’t do.

More heads must roll and the recipients relentlessly tracked down to recover the loot and for punishment to be meted out as a deterrent.