Sport PS in trouble over questionable Sh1.7 billion awards

Sports PS. Kirimi Kaberia when he appeared before the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee at Parliament

The organisers of the IAAF Under-18 World Youth Championship awarded contracts worth Sh66 million to a firm it convinced to lower its charges months after the international event.

Pewin Cabs Limited was awarded a taxi services tender Sh23.8 million above the market rate and a dry cleaning and laundry contract worth Sh30.8 million.

Sports Principal Secretary Kirimi Kaberia was hard-pressed to explain to the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee (PAC) why Pewin Cabs and Pewin Laundry got the contracts.

Kaberia had initially claimed that the companies were not under same directorship, only for Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo to remind him that they were listed in the company’s website as sister firms.

It also emerged that Sh350 million spent on single-sourced services and goods was authorised when Sports Ministry Supply Chain Management Officer Duncan Vincent Ashubwe – who was the Local Organising Committee head of procurement – was away in Real Madrid in suspicious circumstances.

The MPs were told that the approval was done by Kinyua Wamugunda, who sat in for Mr Ashubwe during the period.

Tax obligations

The team that was chaired by the Athletics Kenya president, Retired General Jackson Tuwei, and included former Transport principal secretary Titus Ekai, also awarded contracts running into millions of shillings to firms that had not met their tax obligations.

The fresh details came out yesterday when the Sports PS appeared before the PAC chaired by Ugunja MP Opiyo Wandayi.

Auditor General Edward Ouko has said the ministry could not account for Sh1.7 billion out of the Sh3.5 billion budgeted for hosting the four-day IAAF under-18 World Youth Championships held in Nairobi last July.

"Included in the Sh1,712,918,380 expenditure was Sh349,633,321 which was incurred through direct procurement without meeting the conditions set out in the Public Procurement and Disposal Act, 2015,” said Mr Ouko.

The National Assembly team further raised issues why the organisers contracted three lawyers at over Sh20 million instead of engaging the office of the Attorney General.

The PS said the lawyers were overseeing different contractual agreements.