Finland scholarship case: Uasin Gishu Governor Bii faces predecessor Mandago in court
Uasin Gishu Governor Jonathan Bii on Wednesday faced his predecessor, Mr Jackson Mandago, in the Sh1 billion Finland Education Scholarship case at the Nakuru High Court.
This is after the court issued a warrant of arrest Monday against Governor Bii, his former deputy John Barorot and three other county officials after they failed to testify. The warrant was later lifted.
It later emerged Governor Bii had sought to testify last in the matter.
In a letter addressed to Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Nelson Igonga on September 2, and seen by Nation.Africa, Governor Bii requested to be allowed to testify last due to his workload at the county office.
He sought suspension of the arrest warrant issued against him on Monday morning, claiming he had informed the DPP of his situation in advance.
'Tight schedule'
In the letter, the county boss also raised concerns about the lengthy court testimonies, noting that several county officials had attended court but were unable to testify due to the long drawn-out process.
He further explained that his tight schedule includes attending Senate committee meetings on national cohesion, equal opportunity, and regional integration.
Additionally, the governor noted that his county is undergoing an audit of financial statements by the Auditor-General’s office, and that he is preparing for the swearing-in of his newly appointed Deputy Governor.
“Owing to the nature of my work and other senior officials, I hereby request that I and the officials be bonded as the last witnesses to enable us finalise urgent matters falling within this period I am required to testify,” part of the letter read.
The letter, along with an application to set aside arrest orders, was presented in court by Mr Bii’s lawyers, Kipkoech Ng’etich and county solicitor Kimeli Bulbul.
Appearing before court on Monday evening, the lawyers managed to convince Senior Principal Magistrate Peter Ndege to suspend the arrest warrant until today (Wednesday), when the governor and other officials appeared in court to explain themselves.
Mr Ng’etich told the court that his clients did not intentionally abscond court as they have regularly attended the trials to follow proceedings.
The court has also issued summons for key witnesses Mercy Tarrus and Dr Joel Ruto, who were recalled by the court following a request from the defence team.
The prosecution has lined up at least 202 witnesses, with fewer than 20 having testified since the trial began on July 1, 2024.
