NAIROBI: Current and former public officials, including a Cabinet Secretary, implicated in the UK court proceedings on bribery of Kenyan officials to facilitate award of multi-million shilling tenders will begin facing anti-corruption detectives today.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) will begin taking statements from officials adversely mentioned in what has been described as 'Chicken' scandal, and which involved directors of British printing firm Smith and Ouzman bribing officials in the Kenyan electoral commission and examinations body to win contracts.
Among those expected to appear at Integrity Centre are Independent Elections and Boundary Commission (IEBC) Chairman Issack Hassan, Energy Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir and former IEBC Chief Executive Officer James Oswago. Mr Chirchir served in the defunct Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC).
Each will appear on a different day in an exercise that begins this morning and runs to next Monday. Hassan is expected to be the first one to appear followed by Oswago, then Chirchir.
EXAMINATION MATERIAL
Wednesday, EACC Vice Chair Irene Keino confirmed that summonses had been issued and the top officials will begin appearing this morning.
"The letters have been sent to those mentioned and they will begin appearing in batches," Ms Keino explained, adding that the commission had resolved to summon the officials even as they await the files from UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO).
Two officials of a British printing firm that paid Sh47.3 million in bribes to secure the election and examination material contracts were jailed last week.
Nicholas Charles Smith was jailed for three years by the Southwark Crown Court while his father, Christopher John Smith was sentenced to a 18-month suspended term for his role in the scandal in which top IIEBC and Knec officials pocketed Sh50 million as bribes.
The development aggravated pressure for the anti-graft body to take action and nail those behind the scandal. Last evening, Hassan said he had not received his summons.
"If they call me, I will be glad to go and clear my name," the IEBC chairman said.
Others mentioned are former IIEC commissioners Ken Nyaundi, Kenneth Karani and Hamida Ali Kibwana and KNEC former secretary Paul Wasanga and his juniors, Ephraim Wanderi, Michael Ndua and Geoffrey Gitogo.
HARD EVIDENCE
The kickbacks referred in the dossier as "chicken' were negotiated by Smith & Ouzman's local agent, Trevy James Oyombra. The money was ostensibly meant to influence the award of tenders to the British printing firm.
Wednesday, a senior commission official involved in the probe intimated that it is hard to find any evidence to link those mentioned to the bribe. Although, court documents in the UK showed communication between Oyombra and Smith & Ouzman directors, there are no direct links to the officials mentioned.
"It's possible that Oyombra picked the 'chicken' but how do you prove that he was acting on behalf of those mentioned," the officer posed arguing that for the EACC to nab the public officials, there must be 'hard' evidence which would include bank account deposits or communications.
The task of filling in these gaps now falls on the hands of EACC investigators and the decision to charge them will be taken if the statements and subsequent investigations prove they either received the bribes or perpetrated abuse of office through facilitating sleazy tenders.
This came even as Coalition for Reforms and Democracy Leader Raila Odinga criticised the anti- corruption agency over its sluggishness in prosecuting those mentioned. Raila said Hassan cannot run away from taking responsibility for corruption claims in a body he heads.
