MPs have identified loopholes in the E-citizen consultancy agreement that the government signed saying it favours the suppliers and not the interests of the country.
This as members of the Administration and Internal Affairs committee of the National Assembly dismissed Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary, Dr Bellio Kipsang, for failing to provide the required information on how the E-citizen contract was negotiated and signed.
The committee noted that while the government's e-payment system handles hundreds of millions of shillings on a daily basis being payment for services offered by the government, it was signed by a junior officer on behalf of the government and the suppliers.
Conspicuously missing on the contract presented to Parliament, is the signature of the attorney-general, the legal government advisor.
Also missing are the signatures of the Cabinet secretaries in charge of the National Treasury and Interior Ministry, notwithstanding the contract’s financial and security implication to the country.
“We oversight you on behalf of the people. Kenyans want to know where the money they pay goes," Kisumu West MP Rozzah Buyu said as she accused Dr Kipsang for ambushing the committee with documents just before the meeting.
The E-citizen ecosystem is supported by a consortium of developers registered as ECS (Electronic Services Solutions) LLP that include Webmasters Kenya limited, Pesaflow limited and Olive Tree limited.
While the contract is supposed to last for three years from 2023 to 2026, it does not state the exact effective and due dates, with the MPs questioning the loophole that they fear “could be explored at the government’s expense”.
The agreement provides for termination of the contract by either of the two parties involved – the government and the consortium of developers- in any eventuality. However, the committee fears that the government runs the risk of losing data on the platform in the event it is ended by the suppliers.
“In the event of termination, howsoever occurring, the suppliers shall be entitled to rescind, withdraw or otherwise uninstall all their proprietary infrastructure and resources including all technical infrastructure and resources including all technical infrastructure whether software or otherwise defined in the Service Level Agreement,” the contract reads.
Also, a point of concern to the MPs is the fact that the agreement is signed by Mr Stanley Kamanguya, the CEO of the ICT Authority on behalf of the government and witnessed by Mr Thomas Odhiambo, acting director at ICT Authority and Mr Isaac Ochieng, the E-Citizen director-general.
The consortium of developers of the government e-payment platform were represented by Mr James Ayogo, the CEO of Webmasters Kenya Limited and witnessed by Mr Evid Araka, the director at Pesaflow limited and Mr James Kabiru, the director of Olive Tree Media limited.
“You cannot have an agreement to which trillions of shillings are going through without the signatures of the attorney-general, the Cabinet secretaries of the National Treasury and the Interior Ministry. It is scary,” a member of the committee who did not want to go on record said.
The ECS is responsible and obligated to provide any and all services in the contract, the receipt of all payments accruing from the issuance of any and all performance or other security that may be required.
Webmasters Kenya limited supports and maintains services including provision of customer care and related services of the consortium project.
Pesaflow limited is in charge of all matters relating to payments under the project in accordance with the National Payment System Act of 2011, including the electronic payments set up, integration and implementation and the technical “aspects of the consortium project work.”
Olive Tree Media Limited is in charge of bulk messaging and security support for notification services as well as revenue mobilization in the consortium project work.
