Mutua’s used cars spawn charges for tender team

Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua stands next to police vehicles bought by his county. A decision on whether or not to prefer criminal charges against him over the single-sourced tender was deferred. PHOTO | FILE 

By BDAfrica.com REPORTER

In Summary

• An decision on whether to prefer criminal charges against Governor Alfred Mutua will await a court decision.
• The DPP also accepted EACC recommendations to close “for lack of evidence” files on Mwakwere and Orengo.

Members of a Machakos county tender committee that approved Governor Alfred Mutua’s irregular deal to buy 16 used cars will face criminal charges for their actions.

This follows a decision by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) to accept a recommendation for prosecution from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in an investigation file forwarded to him.

A decision on whether to prefer criminal charges against the Governor over the single-sourced tender was, however, put off awaiting the outcome of a constitutional petition now before the courts.

“In light of High Court Order dated March 31, 2015, barring EACC/ODPP from… ‘considering to prefer any criminal charges’ against the Governor in relation to the tender… pending the hearing of Petition 310/2014, a decision on whether or not to charge the Governor will be deferred until the outcome of the petition,” DPP Keriako Tobiko said in a statement released Friday.

The DPP also accepted an EACC recommendation to “close a file for lack of evidence” on Chirau Ali Mwakwere. The former Cabinet minister, now Kenya’s top envoy to Tanzania, had been accused of using his office to acquire a Kenya Railways Corporation house.

A file on the allegedly irregular allocation of a parcel of land by former Cabinet minister James Orengo, now the Senator for Siaya county, was also closed for lack of evidence.

Other cases approved for prosecution as recommended by EACC include:

• one involving payment made for a fake road rehabilitation project by the Turkana county government.
• another relating to the irregular withdrawal of Sh3 million in 2012 from a Kenya Meat Commission bank account.
• a tender to erect a perimeter wall around the residence of the Trans Nzoia county assembly speaker.
• one on the Nyamira County assembly for single-sourcing medical cover for members at an inflated rate of Sh30 million.

EACC is rushing to beat a 60-day deadline to work through 124 cases included in a document its chief executive presented to the President shortly before this year’s State of the Nation address. Mr Tobiko says he has so far received 18 files and given direction on all of them.

Five Cabinet secretaries, three principal secretaries, the Deputy President’s chief of Staff, 12 governors, the National Police Service Commission chairman, 20 parastatal chiefs, 64 MPs, two senators and several judiciary officers are named in the EACC report.

The files on Cabinet secretaries Charity Ngilu (Lands), Felix Koskei (Agriculture), Davis Chirchir (Energy), Michael Kamau (Transport) and Kazungu Kambi (Labour), who “step aside” pending conclusion of investigations, are not among the 18 cleared so far.

Neither are the files on former Secretary to the Cabinet Francis Kimemia and principal secretaries Nduva Muli (Transport) and Mutea Iringo (Defence).

Also waiting to know their fate are Mutua’s fellow governors Evans Kidero (Nairobi), Peter Munya (Meru), Isaac Ruto (Bomet), Samuel Tunai (Narok), Josephat Nanok (Turkana), Hassan Joho (Mombasa), Nathif Jama (Garissa), Ukur Yatani (Marsabit), Okoth Obado (Migori), Godana Doyo (Isiolo) and Cyprian Awiti (Homa Bay).

Amason Kingi (Kilifi) was let off the hook with a recommendation that members of his administration involved in the procurement of a Sh140 million residence for him face administrative action.