Embattled EAC boss Peter Mathuki recalled, posted to Russia amid graft claims

Embattled East African Community Secretary General Peter Mathuki was recalled on Friday from his influential post in Arusha, and appointed as ambassador designate to Russia.

Mathuki's recall caught many regional actors by surprise, and a source within the regional body informed The Eastleigh Voice that the embattled secretary-general, a Kenyan national, may not have been aware of his new appointment by Friday morning.

"The SG was in a meeting so this may have caught him off guard," disclosed the source.

The Secretary-General, who departed Nairobi on Saturday for Kinshasa on a peace mission ahead of President Salva Kiir's visit on Monday, was appointed to the post in 2021 based on the recommendation of former President Uhuru Kenyatta.

He had not yet completed his term at the Arusha-based regional bloc.

His recall has been prompted by severe allegations of misappropriation of regional bloc funds by Members of Parliament from the region who serve at the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA).

He has also been accused of poor management and favoritism in his line of work.

At the heart of these allegations is a scandal involving the embezzlement of a $6 million Peace Fund at the Secretariat, intended for restoring stability in the region, particularly in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A diplomatic source, speaking anonymously, noted that graft issues had begun emerging some time back, particularly involving "development partner funds disbursed to the East African Community for regional peacebuilding" and addressing issues in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, only to disappear without accountability.

The outgoing Secretary-General has not yet commented on these accusations, which first surfaced in August 2023.

It also emerges that Mathuki's fate was sealed last week on March 5, during the Third Sitting of the Third Session of the Fifth EALA held in Nairobi.

EALA parliamentarians directly urged President William Ruto, who was present for the opening, to dismiss the Secretary-General.

During the debate on President Ruto's speech, Ugandan EALA legislator Musamali Mwasa Paul stated that member countries should appoint competent individuals to the EAC Secretariat who are "ideologically oriented and have a clear understanding of the mission and vision of the East African integration agenda."

“If we only deploy for the sake of it, or if we don’t pay attention to whoever is being deployed at EAC, right from the Secretary-General, to the lowest cadre, Your Excellency [President Ruto], we risk employing merchants. They are just going there to look for money. We risk employing corrupt people. They will go there and start squandering the little support going there," he said.

“I want to implore on you that you take keen interest by ensuring the secretary general [Mathuki] delivers to the expectations and aspirations of the people of East Africa,” Musamali said, catching the attention of President Ruto, who gestured as he made his submissions.

Dennis Namara, Ugandan MP, was more straightforward, asking the EAC Cabinet Secretary and by extension, the Kenyan government and the summit, to get rid of Mathuki.

“It is not too late to liberate the East African Community. The Secretary-General you gave us from Kenya, I was wondering, is this the best export Kenya could send to the community?” Namara posed.

In October 2021, Uganda's 1st Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of East African Community (EAC) Affairs Rebecca Kadaga, criticised the Secretary-General for attempting to "usurp" the powers of partner states and leading a heavily-contested staff recruitment exercise.

“The Secretary-General is an employee of the Partner States and cannot take decisions on their behalf or even take a position,” said Kadaga, a former Speaker of the Ugandan Parliament, in a letter to Mathuki on October 18, 2021.

The Eastleigh Voice has learnt that Kenyan Auditor General Nancy Gathungu visited Arusha last December to conduct an audit and investigate the accusations against the Secretary-General.

A brief report was released, but as of the time of going to press, we have yet to receive it.

Despite the controversy surrounding his tenure, Mathuki has been praised for leaving a legacy in the community, notably for successfully leading the Secretariat in expanding the EAC through the admission of the DRC and Somalia.

Kenya, in a notification by the Office of the President on Friday, proposed Caroline Mwende Mueke to replace Dr Mathuki for the remaining two years of service at the EAC.