Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has raised the red flag over the government’s flagship eCitizen digital payment platform, citing massive accountability failures and potential misuse of over KES 9.6 billion, threatening the integrity of public service delivery across the country.
In a damning audit report for the financial year ending June 30, 2024, Gathungu exposed glaring gaps in transparency, revealing that the National Treasury failed to sign Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with key financial service providers. This lapse has left KES 7.05 billion in public funds hanging in collection and settlement accounts — effectively in limbo.
“This lack of formal agreements compromises accountability and poses a risk to effective public service delivery,” the report warns.
Without SLAs, service providers may be holding or even utilizing public money for private gain, undermining services provided by ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
Billions Untraceable in Pesaflow
The audit also flagged KES 2.57 billion in receipts that could not be traced to any invoices in the Pesaflow system — the platform facilitating digital government payments. These anomalies were attributed to duplicate, partial, or erroneous payments, exposing the system to fraud, misappropriation, and leakage.
“The lack of revenue traceability raises serious accountability concerns,” Gathungu stated.
Glaring Discrepancies
In one example, the Government Digital Payments (GDP) Unit reported KES 2.24 billion due to the Tourism Fund, yet settlement records showed only KES 1.72 billion — a KES 515 million discrepancy.
“This highlights inadequacies in the eCitizen reporting module and raises concerns about the reliability of the system’s settlement reports,” the AG said.
Gathungu warned that such systemic failures are already disrupting the timely remittance of funds to MDAs and counties — potentially crippling essential government services.
Who Runs eCitizen?
Behind the eCitizen platform is ECS (Electronic Citizen Services) LLC, a three-member consortium comprising:
Webmasters Kenya Ltd – customer care and interface services
Pesaflow Ltd – handles cash collection
Olive Tree Media – provides bulk SMS and system security
Initially developed in 2014 by Webmasters Kenya, eCitizen was adopted under President Uhuru Kenyatta’s digitization agenda. Today, the portal hosts over 22,000 services from agencies including NTSA, KRA, and the National Registration Bureau.
This isn’t the first time eCitizen has faced scrutiny. In a previous audit for the year ending June 2023, Gathungu questioned KES 15.5 billion in revenue receipts that could not be verified.
Still, ECS has defended its operations, stating all transactions are verified before invoicing the government monthly for platform maintenance.
The audit paints a troubling picture of a digital system marred by weak oversight and inconsistencies, raising critical questions about the government’s ability to safeguard public funds and deliver services in the digital age.
Public trust is on the line.
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