KeNHA under probe over Sh2billion Greenpark underpass tender fraud claims
EACC investigators are probing what they describe as “massive tendering flaws” in the award process, with KeNHA officials implicated in the procurement chain. The inquiry is registered under EACC/FI/INQ/31/2024, and focuses on how the contract was structured, evaluated, and awarded.
The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), headed by Director General Eng. Luka Kimeli, is facing a fresh corruption probe by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) over alleged tender irregularities in the Sh2.01 billion Greenpark Terminus pedestrian underpass project in Nairobi.
The contract, valued at Sh2,017,116,059.70, was awarded to M/s China Road & Bridge Corporation (CRBC) for the construction of a 176-metre, four-tunnel pedestrian network designed to safely channel an estimated 21,000 pedestrians daily beneath the busy Haile Selassie–Uhuru Highway roundabout.
EACC investigators are probing what they describe as “massive tendering flaws” in the award process, with KeNHA officials implicated in the procurement chain. The inquiry is registered under EACC/FI/INQ/31/2024, and focuses on how the contract was structured, evaluated, and awarded.
The latest EACC probe into the Greenpark underpass now places renewed scrutiny on KeNHA’s procurement practices, raising questions over transparency in one of Nairobi’s flagship infrastructure projects, despite its near completion.
The project is now reported to be 99 per cent complete, with KeNHA indicating that remaining works include covering drainage systems, installing manholes to manage storm water, and final finishing of tunnel structures. Speaking earlier this year, Director General Eng. Luka Kimeli said:
“We anticipate that come March, we shall have completed the remaining areas, so that in another 2–3 months, say by June, we should have the public using this facility.”
He added:
“We anticipate that the remaining areas will be completed shortly, allowing the public to start using this facility soon.”
According to KeNHA, the underpass is designed to improve pedestrian safety around the Haile Selassie, Mombasa Road, Uhuru Highway, and Ng’ong Road roundabout, one of Nairobi’s busiest intersections.
However, the authority is not new to controversy.
KeNHA senior managers have previously faced allegations of procurement misconduct and multi-billion-shilling road contract irregularities.
In 2020, 39 KeNHA staff members were placed under investigation by the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) over suspected corruption linked to road projects, including allegations of unexplained wealth, suspicious transactions, and kickbacks involving contractors.
Investigators at the time examined financial records, bank accounts, and asset declarations in a wider effort to trace proceeds of corruption tied to road development contracts.
