Women in support of Meru Governor Peter Munya march in Meru on March 31, 2015. PHOTO | PHOEBE OKALL |
NATION MEDIA GROUP
President Kenyatta’s corruption dossier, tabled in Parliament on
Tuesday, confirmed what Kenyans have always feared: the country is
being robbed blind by those in charge of public money.
The
poster boy of corruption allegations by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption
Commission (EACC) is Transport Principal Secretary Nduva Muli, accused
of procuring the standard gauge railway, Jubilee’s signature project,
whose cost is Sh320 billion.
The EACC dossier lays bare
corruption in Kenya, from the grand multi-billion-shilling scams, to
the petty, such as the fuelling of private vehicles with public money.
Cabinet
secretaries, principal secretaries, governors, top government officials
and heads of parastatals are accused of lining their pockets with
billions of shillings as millions of Kenyans struggle to afford a meal a
day.
And it demonstrates how top government officials
are suspected to have colluded with senior civil servants, politicians
of questionable reputation, business people and brokers, to carry out
mega scams.
IRREGULAR TENDERING
Mr
Muli, Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary Michael Kamau, Nairobi Governor
Evans Kidero, Secretary to the Cabinet Francis Kimemia, Bomet Governor
Isaac Ruto, Energy CS David Chirchir, Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko Mbuvi,
Land CS Charity Ngilu, Labour CS Kazungu Kambi and the Director of
Procurement at the National Treasury emerged the big players in the
report, which has seen some of them step aside to pave way for
investigations.
The railway tender was awarded to China
Road and Bridge Construction Ltd amid protests by civil society that
the cost was inflated.
EACC claims that it suspects Mr
Muli of “Irregular award of tender for construction of Standard Gauge
Railway to China and Bridges by Kenya Railway Corporation involving
Sh320 billion”.
He is also alleged to have irregularly facilitated the disposal of Kenya Railway properties in Nairobi and other major towns.
“Another
allegation is that he is still influencing procurement processes at the
Kenya Railways and other state corporations under his ministry,” claims
the dossier.
Mr Kamau is alleged to be involved in manipulation of road tenders, and conflict of interest in a consultancy firm, Apec.
“This
company is alleged to have inflated the SGR project consultancy fee in
the project involving billions of Kenya shillings,” it says.
Secondly,
he is accused of illegally contracting Land Mark Clearing and
Forwarding Ltd to handle 80 per cent of cargo belonging to China Road
and Bridge Construction Ltd, which is building the
Mombasa-Nairobi-Malaba railway line for 14 years.
Dr
Kidero is being investigated for irregularities in the signing of a deal
with Chinese truck maker, Foton East Africa, to supply Metro
Transportation System fleet worth Sh4.6 billion.
“It is
alleged that the governor has signed a deal worth Sh4.6 billion in a
plan to launch the Metro Transportation system and the process is
suspected to have been flawed,” says the dossier.
Mr
Kimemia, Kenya’s ambassador to Tanzania Chirau Ali Mwakwere and
Investments Secretary Esther Koimett are alleged to have used their
powers to deny former Kenya Railways staff a chance to buy houses under
the tenant purchase scheme.
Seven per cent of the
houses whose value was estimated to be Sh5 billion, which were described
as non-strategic, were supposed to have been sold to the occupants at
the time.
Mr Kimemia is also alleged to have been involved in the irregular award of a Sh1 billion tender in the ministry of Interior.
BILLION-SHILLING KICKBACK
Outspoken
Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto is alleged to have suddenly accumulated
“immense” wealth, which includes 40 earth movers, tippers and graders at
an estimated cost of Sh400 million and buying a helicopter worth Sh300
million.
“He bought a palatial house in Ngong worth
Sh33 million,” claims the dossier, adding that he operates a chain of
petrol stations.
Mr Chirchir is accused interfering in
a Kenya Pipeline Company tender worth Sh46.14 billion ($500 million) in
which he ensured it was awarded to Sinopec Ltd (China Petroleum and
Chemical Corporation) instead of Zakhem International Construction Ltd.
From
the proceeds, it is claimed, Mr Chirchir and Mr Sonko were to share
Sh1.38 billion ($15 million). “The tender was meant to corruptly yield
US$15 million (Sh1.38 billion), which was to be shared between Davis
Chirchir and Senator Mike Mbuvi,” states the report.
Mr
Kambi, the report alleges, is involved in corrupt deals at the National
Social Security Fund (NSSF) through his strong support for the Tassia
II project whose cost was inflated from Sh3.3 billion to Sh5.05 billion
without the approval of the Board of Trustees.
“The
controversy of the Tassia Phase II upgrade involves Cabinet Secretary
Kazungu Kambi, NSSF senior management and the property development
manager,” it states.
Mrs Ngilu is alleged to belong to
what can only be described as a group of land sharks made up of senior
ministry officials, politicians and brokers, to irregularly acquire and
dispose of land in various parts of the country.
It
names them as Patrick Osero (Agricultural Finance Corporation chairman)
and Deepak Kamani, lawyer James Mbaluka, Chief Lands Registrar Sarah
Mwenda and Mr Sonko.
The parcels of land under
investigations include those in Karen, Nairobi, Ruai, beach plots, Kenya
Meat Commission land at the Coast and the 930-acre Waitiki farm in
Likoni, Mombasa.
Mrs Ngilu is alleged to have colluded
with Mr Evanson Waitiki, who owns the controversial Likoni land, to
inflate the price of the land, which was to be bought by the government
for squatters, by Sh110 million.
Mrs Ngilu’s “cut” in the deal is alleged to have been Sh65 million.
“From
the aforementioned figure, Mrs Ngilu allegedly is going to get a
kickback of Sh65 million once the land is bought by the government for
settling squatters currently occupying it. The remaining Sh45 million is
allegedly going to be shared by other interested parties in the
transaction,” the report states.
The Lands CS, working
alongside Ms Mwenda, and other ministry officials, is alleged to be
seeking to take over a parcel of land owned by Myta Ltd on State House
Crescent Road in Nairobi.
In the Office of Deputy
President William Ruto, Chief of Staff Marianne Kittany is accused of
abuse of office and embezzlement of Sh100 million.
“There
are allegations that Kittany diverted Sh100 million to mobilise MPs in
the abortive campaign in July 2014 to impeach powerful Cabinet Secretary
Anne Waiguru,” says the dossier.
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