From left: Former Bungoma Governor Wycliffe Wangamati, and Governors Kimani Wamatangi (Kiambu), Mohamud Ali (Marsabit) and Bomet’s Hillary Barchok.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) wants 16 governors — five current and 11 former county chiefs — in different graft investigations.
EACC Chief Executive Officer Abdi Mohamud said the commission is investigating the five sitting governors and 11 former over conflict of interest, money laundering, and embezzlement of funds. It is also pursuing cases worth Sh1.6 billion involving 822 county officials.
Among the governors whose files EACC says have been concluded and forwarded to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions with various allegations are Kiambu’s Kimani Wamatangi, Bomet’s Hillary Barchok, former Bungoma governor Wycliffe Wangamati, and Marsabit’s Mohamud Ali.
EACC says the files of the other two sitting governors being probed as well as the 10 former county chiefs have not been completed and will also be sent to the DPP.
In Kiambu, EACC alleges Governor Wamatangi was involved in a Sh1.27 billion tender racket in which companies linked to his wife, children, and sister secured lucrative road contracts while he served as a senator.
Investigators allege that between 2017 and 2022, when he chaired the Senate Roads and Transportation Committee, firms fronted by his relatives bagged roads construction contracts but the accounts remained under his sole control.
EACC investigators also allege that Lub Plus Oil & Energy, owned by his wife and their children, allegedly received over Sh615 million.
Kiambu County Governor Kimani Wamatangi.
King Construction Company, associated with his sister, secured Sh641 million. A third firm, King Company Limited, linked to close allies, pocketed Sh22 million. By the time payments were tallied, more than Sh726 million had allegedly been siphoned through family-controlled companies, according to EACC.
Mr Wamatangi has dismissed the case as harassment, accusing the commission of pursuing a “fishing expedition.”
His office on Friday referred to the county governor’s temporary order from court barring the investigative agency from arresting or prosecuting him over alleged graft.
“A conservatory order is hereby issued restraining the respondents from arresting and charging the petitioner based on the investigations undertaken in this matter until September 18, 2025,” Justice Chacha Mwita ruled on July 24.
Corruption scandal
In Bomet, EACC has concluded Governor Hillary Barchok should face charges over an alleged Sh152 million scandal routed through six companies tied to his inner circle. EACC alleges the firms — Amonmil, Rotvin, Betyvince, Stepherson, Chemasus Construction, and Southzeal Investments—were paid Sh151 million for county contracts. Chemasus alone received Sh31 million, while Southzeal took nearly Sh60 million.
Investigators allege Prof Barchok and his family benefited directly, receiving nearly Sh2.8 million in kickbacks. The EACC claims in the investigation file that it traced how Sh2 million moved from the county treasury to Chemasus and then into the governor’s personal bank account. The commission accuses him of conflict of interest, unlawful acquisition of public property, and money laundering. EACC wants the governor’s close ally, who is the director of Chemasus, charged alongside him.
Bomet Governor Hillary Barchok, in this photo taken on July 2, 2025.
Following a raid by investigators, Prof Barchok had rushed to court and obtained orders barring the commission from arresting him and senior Bomet County officials for their alleged role in the corruption scandal.
The High Court had in February 18, 2025 barred the EACC from arresting Prof Barchok, five senior county officials, and two contractors a 21-day reprieve as investigations continue.
Bomet Resident Judge Julius Ng'arng'ar issued the temporary order following a petition filed by County Secretary Simon Kimutai Langat, arguing that EACC officers were harassing government employees and disrupting operations.
In Bungoma, former governor Wycliffe Wangamati is accused of orchestrating a Sh70 million scandal through his brothers and allied firms. EACC alleges his relatives — directors of Nabwala Construction—received Sh37.6 million funnelled through shell companies, among them Valeria Construction, Mundesi Contractors, Kelco Builders, Fastec Supplies, Nabweso Builders, and Nasikhab Civil Contractors.
The firms, most of them newly registered or unqualified, were awarded tenders for road projects between 2017 and 2021. Some contracts were paid for projects never budgeted, while others relied on forged documents, according to EACC.
Investigators concluded that Nabwala acted as the family’s flagship firm, with county contracts deliberately routed back into the Wangamati household. The case also implicates an MP, who allegedly received Sh3 million from one of the companies.
Former Bungoma Governor Wycliffe Wangamati.
Mr Wangamati has dismissed the allegations, saying the case is political. He claims it is a scheme to frustrate his 2027 bid for Bungoma’s top seat.
“It is just witch-hunt; why would it take seven to eight years for them to come after me?” Mr Wangamati said.
In Marsabit, EACC wants Governor Mohamud Ali and his spouses charged in a Sh728 million procurement probe. EACC says that between 2017 and 2024, six companies tied to the governor, his wives, Senator Mohamed Chute, and other associates won 104 tenders ranging from water tanks and medical supplies to roadworks.
His family allegedly controlled Ororo Company, Damme Investments, and Burqa Ventures, which collectively secured Sh360 million.
Marsabit Governor Mohamud Ali before the Senate County Public Accounts at Bunge Tower in Nairobi on June 9, 2025.
Investigators say payments into these firms’ accounts were closely tied to transfers into the governor’s personal bank accounts.
Senator Chute, associated with Blue Nile (EA) Ltd and Midrock Water Drilling, also benefited, according to EACC. Investigators allege the two firms received Sh15 million. Another company, Al-Imran Investments, landed Sh352 million in contracts and allegedly transferred Sh11 million to Quanti Bills Consult, a firm partly owned by the governor.
The EACC says its inquiry also uncovered smaller mobile money transfers linking the governor’s wife to county employees in an effort to disguise pay-outs. Altogether, the six firms are alleged to have siphoned Sh728,842,489, much of which investigators say ended up in accounts controlled by the governor and his household.
