Rise of new ‘tenderpreneurs’: Ruto insiders bag mega contracts
Then-Deputy President William Ruto and other Kenya Kwanza leaders during the launch of his manifesto at the Kasarani Indoor Arena in Nairobi on June 30, 2022. The President’s senior appointees, close allies and their relatives have bid and won multibillion-shilling contracts in the nine months that the Kenya Kwanza government has been in power, shining a spotlight on ‘tenderpreneurs’ of the new administration.
What you need to know:
- Our investigations reveal that firms linked to close allies of President Ruto and UDA lynchpins have won recent lucrative tenders, including those for a fiber optics project and road repairs, raising questions on influence-peddling and conflict of interest in contracts.
President William Ruto’s senior appointees, close allies and their relatives have bid and won multibillion-shilling contracts in the nine months that the Kenya Kwanza government has been in power, shining a spotlight on ‘tenderpreneurs’ of the new administration.
Sunday Nation has established that firms associated with Communications Authority (CA) Board Chairperson Mary Wambui Mungai, Belgut MP Nelson Koech, and Kenya Revenue Authority Chairman Anthony Mwaura were among influential bidders for lucrative contracts recently advertised by various government agencies. Mr Mwaura was, however, unsuccessful in one particular bid.
Official documents seen by Sunday Nation show Nightingale Enterprises Ltd, which has links to Ms Wambui, is one of the firms that the Information and Communication Technology Authority (ICT Authority) that has awarded contracts for laying of fibre optic cables and related accessories.
The contract is a critical part of President Ruto’s campaign promise to create a digital superhighway through which several economic sectors will open more employment opportunities and avail government services at the click of a button.
As for Mr Koech, the Belgut MP, a company owned by his wife, Chepkirui Kones, has been awarded a Sh1.2 billion contract to repair sections of Mombasa Road, Uhuru Highway and Waiyaki Way that were damaged during construction of the Nairobi Expressway. Mr Koech is a UDA MP and chairman of the powerful Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations.
While there are no laws expressly barring public officials or their close relatives from performing government contracts, the practice is widely frowned upon as it creates the perception that some individuals may use their influence to ensure their companies win taxpayer-funded tenders. Declaration of conflict of interest is also required in some instances.
A number of cases investigated by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Assets Recovery Agency in recent years have roped in relatives who played various roles in questionable contracts. Ms Wambui and her daughter Purity were among them in a tax evasion case that was eventually withdrawn, surrounded by accusations that it was a political witch-hunt by then President Uhuru Kenyatta against key supporters of Dr Ruto.
Public procurement laws
Public procurement laws and guidelines are designed to ensure transparency and accountability, particularly because public resources are involved. They also serve to promote competition with a view to ensuring that the public gets value for money.
Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations Chairperson and Belgut MP Nelson Koech. A company owned by his wife, Chepkirui Kones, has been awarded a Sh1.2 billion contract to repair sections of Mombasa Road, Uhuru Highway and Waiyaki Way that were damaged during the construction of the Nairobi Expressway.
Both President Ruto and his deputy Rigathi Gachagua, in their 2022 campaign manifesto, promised to end state capture and manipulation of public procurement systems to suit politically connected ‘tenderpreneurs’ and powerful civil servants, arguing that they promote cronyism and theft of public resources.
They committed to forming a Commission of Inquiry to investigate state capture in former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration, arguing that only a few well-connected individuals; including cabinet secretaries, senior public servants, security chiefs and their relatives benefitted from government contracts.
The President and his deputy have, however, gone quiet on their campaign pledge for investigations shortly after assuming power.
In February this year, the Cabinet approved the Conflict of Interest Bill to “provide a framework for the management of conflict of interest on the part of state and public officers arising from the discharge of their official duties.”
The ICT Authority invited bidders for the fibre optic network tender on March 14, 2023. The initial deadline for applications was March 28, 2023, but this was extended by two weeks.
Nightingale Enterprises was one of three bidders handed contracts for laying fibre optic cables and related accessories.
Records at the Business Registration Service (BRS) indicate that Nightingale Enterprises was incorporated on March 30, 2012.
Evelyn Nyambura Mungai, a daughter of CA Chairperson Wambui, owns the largest stake in Nightingale Enterprises with 700 shares. Ruth Waithira Kinyanjui holds 200 shares in the company while Thomas Muya Njau owns 100 shares.
The three shareholders double up as company directors. As CA chairperson, Ms Wambui is under the same ministry as the ICT Authority.
The listed postal address for Nightingale Enterprises was also used by Purma Holdings, another company associated with Ms Wambui when bidding for Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) tenders in the 2016-2017 financial year.
Communications Authority (CA) Board Chairperson Mary Wambui Mungai. Nightingale Enterprises Ltd, which has links to Ms Wambui, is one of the firms that the Information and Communication Technology Authority (ICT Authority) that has awarded contracts for laying of fibre optic cables and related accessories.
Purma Holdings also used the same postal address when listing as a company owned by members of a disadvantaged group looking to benefit from the government’s Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (Agpo) programme.
Through Agpo, the government reserves some contracts for disadvantaged or minority groups such as women and people living with disabilities.
Bagged several contracts
Through Purma Holdings and Nightingale Enterprises, Ms Wambui and her family have bagged several government contracts that have landed them a seat at the table of wealthy Kenyans.
Under the Jubilee administration in which Dr Ruto served as Deputy President, Ms Wambui bagged a Sh90 million contract to supply the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa) with personal protective equipment at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Purma also supplied Kemsa with facemasks worth Sh30.5 million.
Nightingale Enterprises found itself in the eye of a storm in 2018 when the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) contracted it to furnish offices in the recently completed Parliament Towers.
China Jiangxi International Kenya Ltd, the firm that put up the building, had also bid for the furnishing contract. The Chinese firm claimed in a petition to the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board (PPARB) that Nightingale had used forged documents in its bid.
A whistleblower also accused Nightingale of submitting irregular bank statements, quoting works never performed and listing related companies as its referees.
Nightingale Enterprises was, nevertheless, eventually handed the PSC contract. The firm has also supplied the military with various equipment and foodstuff over the years.
In the fibre optic tender, Nightingale beat 36 other bidders.
The government intends to build a 100,000-kilometre fibre optic network, a priority of the Kenya Kwanza administration.
Treasury CS Njuguna Ndung’u in his Thursday Budget speech, while allocating more money to President Ruto’s Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda, included the ‘digital superhighway’ among five ‘strategic sectors’ that are projected to have the largest impact and linkages to the economy as the foundation for the projected recovery. Prof Ndung’u allocated Sh1.3 billion to the National Backbone Fibre Optic Cable Phase II Expansion project.
Kenya Revenue Authority Chairman Anthony Mwaura. Mr Mwaura’s firm Toddy Civil Engineering has constructed roads in Kiambu County, a hospital in Chuka for the Tharaka-Nithi government and Kirubia Stadium in the same devolved unit. The firm has also laid sewerage pipes for Kwale County.
Two other companies – Baran Telecom Networks and Nia Fiber Africa – were also declared winning bidders for the 100,000-kilometre fibre optic network.
Among the losing bidders was Toddy Civil Engineering, a company associated with KRA Board Chairperson Anthony Mwaura.
Mr Mwaura founded the company on May 13, 2008. Much like the firms associated with Ms Wambui, Toddy Civil Engineering Company Ltd bagged many government contracts in the Jubilee administration.
Mr Mwaura’s firm has constructed roads in Kiambu County, a hospital in Chuka for the Tharaka-Nithi government and Kirubia Stadium in the same devolved unit. Toddy Civil Engineering has also laid sewerage pipes for Kwale County.
The Belgut MP’s wife, who was contracted to repair sections of Mombasa Road, is the daughter of Bomet East MP Beatrice Kones.
Ms Kones owns all 1,000 shares in Shovels N Trowels, which will be paid at least Sh1.19 billion for repairs of the road sections.
The Business Registration records indicate that Shovels N Trowels was incorporated on August 24, 2009. The firm is based in Lavington, the ownership documents further show.
Shovels N Trowels will repair the section that starts at the James Gichuru Road roundabout to Ole Sereni Hotel. Another company, Wolf Paving Works Kenya Ltd, will repair the section starting at Ole Sereni Hotel to Mlolongo where the Nairobi Expressway terminates.
Multiple attempts by the Sunday Nation to get Ms Kones and Ms Wambui—three times over the past 10 days—have been futile as messages, both on WhatsApp and SMS platforms, to their known numbers have gone unanswered.
We sought to know their roles in the companies, how they came about to win the tenders, and for Ms Wambui, whether or not she had declared a conflict of interest in the application.
But a government official, who did not wish to be named, said there was nothing wrong with politically-connected individuals getting such tenders as long as they followed the right process.
“Are they not Kenyans like any others?” he said.
