The shortcuts and procurement mess that cost Treasury billions in excise tax

Times Tower building in Nairobi

When John Njiraini took over the corner office at Times Tower as Kenya's top tax collector, he found that his predecessor had started procuring a system to monitor the production of alcohol real time from his office.

From a computer at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) offices, the Commissioner General would see every bottle of beer as it drops out of the manufacturing line at the East African Breweries plant on Thika Road or Keroche Breweries in Naivasha.