Kebs inspection tenders spark uproar
Kenya Bureau of Standards CEO Bernard Njiraini when he appeared before MPs on February 20 over the Special Audit Report on the Pre-Inspection Verification of Conformity to Standards.
What you need to know:
- During debate, the lawmakers differed on what should be done to the two firms for having won the tender through fraud, forgery and submitting doctored papers.
The CEO is also accused of ignoring PIC’s advisory to seek and follow the AG’s legal opinion before awarding the tender.
A report on Kebs’ move to contract more inspectors of imported goods triggered furious debate in the National Assembly, with a section of MPs accusing their colleagues of scheming to water it down.
Provision of pre-export verification of conformity is an assessment programme applied to products at the respective exporting countries to ensure their compliance with applicable Kenyan technical regulations and mandatory standards or approved specifications.
Enlargement of pool
The Public Investment Committee (PIC) report touches on two tenders advertised by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) for the enlargement of a pool of inspectors for general goods, mobile equipment and second-hand motor vehicles.
The House on Tuesday adopted the report, meaning, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission ( EACC) has 60 days to inquire into how Kebs entered into a contract with M/s EAA company Ltd and M/s Auto Terminal Japan (ATJ) Ltd.
During debate, the lawmakers differed on what should be done to the two firms for having won the tender through fraud, forgery and submitting doctored papers.
While some MPs want the directors of the firms arrested and charged for forgery, some opposed the move because the necessary regulations were not in place when the tenders were awarded. “Forgery is a crime in the penal code. Any person who engages in fraud and forgery should be taken to court without undue delay,” Speaker Justin Muturi said.
MPs Kimani Ichung’wah (Kikuyu) and Gladys Wanga (Homa Bay) supported the Speaker. They argued that letting off the companies was tantamount to the House validating corruption.
“The law should be followed to the letter because the issues around the tender involve forgery and fraud,” Mr Ichung’wah said.
Kebs advertised the tenders despite having running contracts with five companies for the inspection services, a move that triggered a series of legal battles and investigations by a number of agencies, including EACC, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and Parliament through PIC.
In its findings, PIC established that Kebs Managing Director Bernard Njiraini was culpable for interfering in procurement and recommended that he should be held liable for any loss Kebs may make arising from litigation linked to the award of the tenders.
It further censured the Kebs boss for failing to obtain a legal opinion from the Office of the Attorney-General, withholding and giving misleading information when he belatedly sought the opinion, which is contrary to provisions of public procurement law.
The CEO is also accused of ignoring PIC’s advisory to seek and follow the AG’s legal opinion before awarding the tender.
Forging documents
PIC has recommended that the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) commences debarment proceedings against the two bidders — M/s EAA Company Ltd and M/s ATJ Ltd — for violating the procurement law by misrepresenting and forging documents to win tenders.
A special audit done by the Office of the Auditor-General found that Ms ATJ Ltd did not have the physical and technical infrastructure needed to satisfactorily execute the work.
It further found that the firm lacked the physical and technological infrastructure to do the inspection under the tender in the UK, Japan, United Arab Emirates.
