The Directorate of Criminal Investigating (DCI) are investigating how Parliament awarded Sh665 million tender to a company with forged documents.
Nightingale Enterprises Limited (NEL), associated with former Jubilee Party funder, Mary Wambui Mungai submitted forged documents to the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) and won a tender worth Sh665 million.
According to DCI’s report, the directors of the company, State and Equity Bank officials conspired to defraud and to fraudulently acquire public property.
The company provided a tender security document dated September 28, 2018, indicating there had a credit line of up to Sh500 million with Equity Bank Limited and that the company’s account had a balance of Sh250,172,220.
However, the investigations revealed that at the time of the bidding for the tender, their bank account had only Sh2,227.48 and was not supposed to be awarded the tender.
Equity Bank
Sh250 million. The debit/credit and balance columns were edited,” read the DCI’s report.
It was also established that company opened the Equity Bank account following a resolution of the NEL meeting of Boards on September 27, 2018 with Mungai solely with the mandate to sign.
According to records obtained by the DCI, the meeting was attended by Ruth Waithera Kinyanjui (600 shares), Samuel Kariuki Maina (200 shares), and Mungai (200 shares).
The bidding companies were to demonstrate their experience in the building and construction industry of at least five years.
NEL in the documents claimed it had done several works for Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) and other works in different county governments which most of them were found to be fake.
“The company, for example, presented a letter dated February 16, 2018 purportedly from KeNHA -tender number KeNHA/ CONTR/007/2015-2016LOT49 and signed by Victor Sinapai,” read th report.
However, investigations revealed that the letter did not originate from KeNHA and neither was Sinapai the authority’s employee.
NEL had also said they rehabilitated the 32km Khayega-Shinyalu road.
KeRRA however said the tender, KeRRA/14-15/NT/038 was never awarded to NEL and the said road was only 5.7km and not 32km as claimed by NEL.
Detectives also established that the Masinga-Wendano road in Machakos which NEL claimed had been awarded was actually done by Mutindi General Contractors.
NEL had also indicated they constructed the Buna-Ajawa road in Wajir County.
It was, however, revealed that this was not true and that Hussein Ahmed Ali who signed the award letter was not the county’s Procurement manager.
Other fake projects indicated in the NEL’s tender documents included that of Lake Naivasha Resort, a tender for hotel development and purportedly signed by one Terry Kariiyu.
Investigations also revealed that the development by Ntikya Enterprise tender of February 8, 2018 signed by Waithaka Chege did not take off due to court case LR. No8480/2765.
Technical staff
It was also established that some of the company’s technical staff have never been employees of NEL.
Other projects listed but which the company was never awarded any award included Tana Water Works, rehabilitation of Yatta dam canal, Isiolo Water and Sanitation project among others.
NEL also, as a requirement, presented 14 vehicle and heavy machinery log books but detectives said some of the vehicles belonged to Purma Holdings, Draft and Develop Engineers Limited while some were co-owned by Realtime Logistics Limited and various financial institutions.
PSC has so far paid the company Sh420,923,358, with Sh329 million paid between June last year and April this year.
The submitted forged documents to the PSC including a Specific Power of Attorney dated August 24, 2018 was signed by Mungai’s daughter Evelyn Nyambura Mungai, Ephantus Githui Gathekia, Peter Njoroge Muchuku and Samuel Kamau Nduati.
Detectives, however, established that Gathekia died on May 2, 2018.
The death incident was reported at Makongeni police station in Thika and could not have signed the power of attorney on August 24, over three months after his death.
Nduati in his statement said he is not related to the NEL and neither were the listed directors known to him.
He also proved that the signature appended on the document did not belong to him.
The DCI has recommended that Mungai, Muchuku and Gitura be charged with conspiracy to defraud and fraudulent acquisition of public property among other charges.
Others to be charged are Esther Nyaruai Kabau with acquisition and use of proceeds of crime, Anthony Maingi Chege with forgery, Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui with forgery of the power of Attorney, while Mungai’s close ally Samuel Kariuki Maina and Equity Banks manager Ambrose Makanga Ngari are to be charged with forgery (First published by the Informer in 2021)