The graft laden Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) has been thrust into a reform path after the board issued policy guidelines to have the whole list of prequalified suppliers annulled, existing contracts reviewed and tenders awarded through restricted tendering probed.
In new changes announced today by KEMSA board chairman Irungu Nyakera, the move is one of the measures instituted to eradicate corruption at the institution.
Nyakera added that the process will start afresh to ensure that only companies that provide value for money are prequalified.
“To strengthen our procurement processes and supply chain management to ensure efficiency, fairness, transparency and integrity we have immediately revoke the current list of pre-qualified suppliers and restart an objective process afresh to ensure.” Nyakera stated.
The medical institution will also review all ongoing contracts that have been procured through single sourcing, monopoly action to tame cartelisation and ensure transparency in procurement process.
“We are introducing the lotting system in procurement that will set an upper financial limit beyond which no single bidder will win contracts. This will promote healthy competition by diffusing vested interest and racketeering and thereby ensure value for money for Mwananchi from our procurement processes,” said Nyakera
“Any contract that is found to not be providing value for money will be forwarded to the Public procurement and Regulatory Authority (PPRA ) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (Eacc) for investigation.” Nyakera added.
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 immediately before and after the last presidential polls.
Sacked former Chief Executive Officer Terry Ramadhani oversaw the payments.
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, the former 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.
