Former Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) boss Fernandes Barasa has dismissed claims that he stole money from the company.
Speaking after his endorsement for governor by his Abakolwe clan, Barasa said he had not been summoned officially by the House Committee stating that he learned the matter from the media.
“Anybody who thinks that I stole money should go to court and sue me. I’m ready to face any panel to clear my name,” he said.
He said he is ready to face any panel to clear his name on accusations of embezzlement of funds.
The Public Investment Committee (PIC) of the National Assembly last week summoned Barasa over the Lake Turkana Wind Power contract.
According to Nassir Abdullswamad Sheriff, they wanted Barasa’s presence to explain how he awarded the contract of the construction of the LTWP without being directly involved in the procurement.
It was after the acting Chief Executive Officer Anthony Wamukota failed to explain who authorized the award of the contract to a Spanish firm Isolux Corsan that ended up delaying the construction of the project forcing Ketraco to terminate the deal.
“There is a letter that has come up that the former Ketraco boss, Fernandes Barasa had indicated that there is the need to renegotiate the deal that generated energy. So, we need to ask the former Energy CS Charles Keter whether he was aware of the former Ketraco CEO, “Nassir, Abdullswamad Sheriff said.
Kenyans paid a Sh5.7 billion fine after Isolux Corsan failed to build the Loiyangalani-Suswa power transmission line to evacuate power from the Lake Turkana Wind Power.
The contract was handed over to a consortium of Chinese firms – Nari Group Corporation and Power China Guizhou Engineering Company.
Isolux was to build the line by August 2018 but Ketraco terminated the contract after the Spanish firm went into receivership.
The project was later completed in mid-2017 for Sh28 billion, but the line went live in September 2018.