Court issues arrest warrant for Kisumu City Manager Abala Wanga over forgery, fraud charges

The Milimani Anti-Corruption Court has ordered the arrest of Kisumu City Manager Abala Wanga after he failed to appear in court on Friday to face a raft of corruption and forgery charges.

According to a statement from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Wanga is accused of altering the contents of a letter dated June 10, 2024, which purported to invite him to the CLEAN Air Forum in Lagos, Nigeria, between July 8 and 12, 2024.

Prosecutors say the altered document was allegedly used to justify excess facilitation payments from the county government.

“Prosecution further told court that on June 19, 2024, at the Kisumu County offices, the accused allegedly uttered the forged letter, claiming it to be an authentic invitation issued by the University of Lagos. As a result, he is said to have fraudulently received Ksh.283,402.50 in excess facilitation payments,” the ODPP said.

Beyond the questionable travel documents, the ODPP has also preferred additional charges against the city manager.

These include the alleged fraudulent acquisition of public property worth Ksh.8,701,091 from the Kisumu County Government.

Wanga is further accused of forging a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) certificate indicating a mean grade of C+, purportedly issued by the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC), and presenting it as genuine.

Senior Principal Magistrate Gichana issued the arrest warrant after the city manager failed to attend the court session.