In our third and final publication of the three-part series exposé about the entrenched rot at the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (Kemsa), in our previous two series, The Informer has uncovered the apparent conflict of interest in recruitment of the current Chief Executive Officer who chaired the Human Resource board committee that planned and developed terms of reference (TORs) for recruitment of a new CEO less than a month before the ‘jinxed-like’ position was advertised.
In our second publication, our investigations unearthed administrative flaws by CEO Terry Ramadhani Kiunge ranging from insubordination of the former Ministry of Health Principal Secretary Susan Mochache and former Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua on staffing, redeployment and hiring guidelines during the transition period.
And in our final exposé, we bring to you the controversial tendering and procurement flaws, questionable payments including close to Sh1billion pay outs for Covid-19 supplies made between June and mid-October last year and alleged appropriation of Sh2billion recapitalication kitty from World Bank to settle contractual payments that has left the authority cash-strapped.
Despite the Sh8.3billion Kemsa probe on Covid-19 supplies the height of the pandemic outbreak in 2020 and 2021 by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (Eacc) having stalled after the Director of the Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji returned the investigations files his Eacc counterpart Twalib Mbarak for further investigations, our investigations established that Kemsa paid an additional 908million on Covid-19 related items between June and mid-October last year.
Some of the companies paid were adversely mentioned in the initial Kemsa heist that attracted multi-pronged investigations by the National Assembly and Senate Health committees alongside National Assembly Public Investments Committee and Eacc respectively in 2020.
At the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the physical investigations files allegedly disappeared mysteriously.
Despite the former Head of Public Service Kinyua through a circular dated September 19, 2022, Ref: No OP/CAB.26/4A/Vol.1(40) and addressed to the Attorney General, all Cabinet Secretaries and all Principal Secretaries having directed that any amount from Sh50million and above should not be paid unless through prior approval and verification from the National Treasury, Kemsa CEO went ahead and approved the payments.
According to records in our possession, Shop “N” Buy Limited, one of the firms that elicited national public outrage for receiving Sh970million for supplying PPES to Kemsa in the initial heist probe, last year in July and September, the same firm was paid an additional Sh499million.
Records show the money was paid in three equal tranches of Sh166,250,000 each on July 8, July 27 and September 7, 2022 respectively.
The three payments in favour of Shop “N” Buy Ltd were made vide Order No.832219, No.832252 and No.832223.
During the 2021 parliamentary committee probe hearings, Shop “N” Buy Ltd owner James Cheluley confessed that he registered the firm on February 14, 2020 and was awarded the lucrative tender a day after he sought to supply the government agency with the medical equipment.
Similarly, La Miguela Holdings Limited which also implicated in Sh180million payment in the stalled investigations was paid a total of Sh90million in three tranches of similar amount of Sh30million each on July 27, July 8 and September 30, 2022.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee (PIC) probing the expenditure of money in the purchase of the Covid related equipment in 2020, La Miguela Holdings Limited director James Njuguna told the committee that he was an “innocent passer-by” who landed a Sh180 million tender for the supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs).
Others that received payments last year for supplying Covid-19 related items include; Medilife Biologicals Ltd (Sh110million), Trippleage Investment Limited(Sh25million) and Abyssinia Group of Industries (Sh18million).
Other multiple companies were flagged as having been part of the infamous Covid-19 billionaires.
However, up to date, supplier has ever been charged over what is believed to have been a well-orchestrated looting. At the time, sacked Kemsa boss Dr. Jonah Manjari was serving as the CEO.
Among other irregular procurement flaws cited under Ramadhani’s tenure include payment of Sh8million to a single-sourced law firm not included in the list of authority’s legal services providers and single sourcing of JKUAT Human Resource and Board Secretariat Services paid Sh1.5million monthly.
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