THERE has been a debate in the Parliamentary debating chamber in regards to public funds swindlers.
On Friday the MPs expressed bitterness over the growing trend of mismanagement of public funds, suggesting that stiff measures should be imposed to end the problem, including strengthening the country's accounting systems and execution by hanging those implicated in the malpractice.
Debating findings of the technical audit report by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament (PAC), Local Authority Accounts Committee (LAAC), Public Investment Committee (PIC), the legislators indicated that people have been identified but there is sluggishness in the issue of accountability.
Embezzlement refers to a form of white-collar crime in which a person or entity intentionally misappropriates the assets entrusted to them.
In this type of fraud, the embezzler attains the assets lawfully and has the right to possess them, but the assets are then used for unintended purposes.
Embezzlement is a breach of the fiduciary responsibilities placed upon a person.
Embezzlement takes place when a person intentionally uses funds for a different purpose than they were intended to be used.
The embezzlers might have permission to handle assets in certain ways, but not to take them.
They might create bills and receipts for activities that did not occur and then use the money paid for personal expenses.
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The embezzlers should be dealt with in accordance with the law and be a lesson to others who might be wishing to involve themselves in such acts, because they cause other people to live in challenge, including pupils missing desks or important infrastructure.
Billions of shillings are being embezzled, something that is not acceptable, and it is a good thing that MPs stayed strong denouncing such acts, expressing total dismay over the matter, noting that some of their counterparts were not giving it the weight it deserved. Individuals who are entrusted with access to an organisation's funds are expected to safeguard those assets for their intended use.
It is illegal to intentionally access that money and convert it to personal use. Such activities can include diverting funds to accounts that appear to be authorised to receive payments or transfers.
However, the account is a front that allows the individual, or a third party they are collaborating with, to take the funding.
For instance, an embezzler might create bills and receipts for business activities that never took place or services that were never rendered to disguise the transfer of funds as a legitimate transaction.
An embezzler might collaborate with a partner who is listed as a consultant or contractor who issues invoices and receives payment, yet never actually performs the duties they are charging for.
