#COVID19Millionaires #NTVInvestigates #DennisOkari
Corruption rears its ugly head from the boardrooms of the ministry of health to the store houses at KEMSA.
The night before the first case of Covid-19 was reported in the country two vans with communication jamming equipment made their way to KNH parking lot. The unit handling Covid-19 testing was out of bounds and limited to duty personnel. The computer networks were disabled, and there was no phone network. This ensured no leakage of the test results until the President was notified of the virus presence in the country.
As Covid-19 was sweeping across the globe, it was about to expose the deepened vulnerabilities that have existed in Kenya. Two diseases were going to co-exist together, corruption and Covid-19.
Twelve days after the first positive case was reported in the country, the first batch of equipment from Chinese billionaire Jac Ma arrived at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport through an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787 cargo flight. Kenya received about 20,000 testing kits and 100,000 face masks to help protect healthcare workers on the frontline.
As the consignment of test kits and protective gear was being offloaded, two companies were involved in clearing the medical supplies. Strangely, the shipment disappeared to a private warehouse, and no one wanted to talk about it.
Mega Scope Healthcare and Crown Healthcare Limited are the two companies that were appointed by KEMSA and authorized to clear the consignment from JKIA. There are records to show they received the kits, but there is no public record of what happened.
NTV Investigates has established through the Network Action Against Corruption, an agency that has been probing the matter, that nearly a dozen unscrupulous companies in Tanzania benefitted from the Jack Ma donation meant for Kenyans.
The fraudsters with the backing of high ranking government officials and their sponsors, including top-level managers at KEMSA conspired to move the consignment by road to Tanzania. Police officers following instructions from their seniors escorted the shipment…
As KEMSA was dealing with a myriad of other issues, there were other players interested in the Covid-19 kitty.
Take the example of Kilig Limited. According to records at the department of the registrar general, the company was registered on January 22, 2020, with the apparent anticipation of the global pandemic coming through our borders. It was not a question of if but when. The company whose directors are Zhu Jinping and Wilbroad Gatei Gachoka received a direct tender a month later to deliver PPEs at the cost of Sh4 billion with no documented evidence of financial, technical or production capabilities at an inflated cost of Sh9,000 as opposed to the market price of 5,600. The actual beneficiaries of the contract are not the persons listed on the company as shareholders. They are just proxies. A Nairobi lawyer registered the company on behalf of a vocal Jubilee party power broker and the personal assistant of a top official in the opposition.
Ziwala Limited whose directors and shareholders are Samantha Ngina Muthama, and June Nduta Kinyua got an Sh 84 million contract to supply 120, 000 pieces of KN95 face masks where a piece was priced at Sh700.
Other firms that benefited from the Covid-19 billions include; Shop ‘N’ Buy Limited. The company owned by James Kipketer Chululey received a Sh970 million deal to supply 100,000 PPE kits at the cost of 9,000 each and 100,000 pieces of KN95 masks at the price of 700 apiece.
Accenture Kenya Limited was given a tender of Sh108 Million to supply 12,000 PPEs. Abyssinia Group of Industries received sh27 Million contract to supply 30,000 pieces of N95 masks.
Bell Industries owned by Titus Kirea Ibui and Mercy Karambu Ngeera was contracted to supply 15,000 PPE kits and 5,000 thermometers at the cost of 10,000 apiece. The payout was sh185 million.
Med life Biologicals Limited got two tenders worth Sh230 million to supply 200,000 KN95 masks and 20,000 disposable masks.
Nanopay Limited owned by Ahmed Rahim Mohamud Mohammed got a tender of sh35 million to supply 50,000 pieces of KN95 face masks.
Light Up Afrika Limited owned by Ms Emma Wanjiku Maina and Martha Wanjiru Thuku got a bid of sh25 million to provide 50,000 pieces of 500ml hand sanitizers.
Wallabis Ventures Limited owned by Wanjiku Ndungu and James Njenga Ndungu got a contract of Sh90 million to supply 10,000 PPE kits.
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21 авг 2024