The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) Dr. Andrew Mulwa has blamed suppliers and contractors for the delay of over Ksh16 million worth payments.
According to the CEO, the authority failed to pay the suppliers their millions because they failed to ask for it.
Appearing before the National Assembly‘s Public Investments Committee on Social Services Administration and Agriculture on Wednesday, September 27, Mulwa added that the money was available in the KEMSA account.
Moreover, Mulwa stated that the Public Works Department had not issued KEMSA with completion certificates to prove that the work they were doing was completed.
Further KEMSA Finance Manager Waiganjo Karanja added that the money in question was gaining interest.
“The money is kept in the KEMSA operations account. It earns interest that is usually declared, and it supplements running of our operation,” Karanja stated.
Way Forward for KEMSA Suppliers
The KEMSA bosses were additionally asked why the authority failed to declare the money to the Unclaimed Assets Authority or why they failed to reach out to the contractors.
According to the committee, it had been more than 5 years since the authority contracted the suppliers for different services.
Also Read: Gov’t to Sack over 200 Contract Employees at KEMSA
In response, the CEO stated that they would consider reaching out to the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority in case they failed to trace the people to whom the money is owed.
Ruto Cracks Whip
Earlier on May 15, President William Ruto on Monday dissolved the KEMSA board and fired the former PS Josephine Mburu over a Ksh3.7 billion tender scandal.
The scandal was brought to light after the Global Fund was forced to cancel a Ksh3.7 billion mosquito nets tender owing to KEMSA’s irregular procurement process.
Further, the tender process was flagged as the foreign agency faulted the tender committee for siding with some of the bidders.
EACC clean bill of health
However, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) cleared suspended KEMSA officials of any graft charges in the Ksh3.7 billion Global Fund mosquito nets tender.
Also Read: KEMSA Board Revokes List of Pre-Qualified Suppliers
EACC CEO Twalib Mbarak on Wednesday, September 27, noted that investigations revealed an attempt to breach procurement laws, but no money was lost in the process.
“We have concluded the KEMSA case, and we have established that it was an attempt to do some shoddy work and it came to the attention of the public and EACC on time,” he stated.
