James Oswago reveals intrigues in procurement of poll machines

Former IEBC CEO James Oswago (right) and his Personal Assistant Haron Owino when they appeared before the Public Accounts Committee yesterday to answer questions on the alleged corrupt deals before he left the office. [Photo: Moses Omusula/Standard]

Former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chief Executive James Oswago has disclosed the deep-rooted interests within the electoral body that thwarted the procurement of the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kit.

Oswago detailed internal pressure and interference from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Kenya High Commission in India, who were rooting for the lucrative tender to be awarded to Face Technologies Company.

He lifted the lid on the intrigues that followed the Sh3.9 billion tender, even disclosing that an official from the High Commission had allegedly demanded Sh30 million bribe from the 4G Solutions Company that had been identified to supply the kits, as a condition to be cleared as a reputable firm.

Oswago is accused by the Auditor General Edward Ouko in his special report of being ‘too determined’ to ensure 4G was awarded the tender, in the process frustrating the work of the tender committee and unilaterally cancelling the process, once it was clear to him that his preferred company had lost.

In the audit report, Ouko faults the former CEO of engineering the procurement process to have 4G Solutions given the tender, further accusing him of ‘single-handedly’ mishandling the procurement of the BVR devices

Oswago, however, denied the allegations, dismissing the auditor’s report as fatally flawed, inaccurate and unfair to him. Instead, he claimed there was a great push to have the tender given to Face Technologies, which he resisted on grounds that it had not received the nod by the evaluation team and had also made a quotation way above the IEBC’s planned budget

“There was a determination from the commission that this tender must go to Face Technologies. Every procurement law that stood on the way had to be breached ,” Oswago told the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee  yesterday.

Lost bids

He said Face Technologies had lost in two evaluation bids as it had quoted Sh1 billion more than the Sh3.9 billion that the electoral body had budgeted for the kits.

Oswago told the committee that officials from 4G Solutions had written a letter to IEBC protesting at how a Mr Hudson Mboya, an official at the High Commission, had demanded a Sh30 million bribe to have them give a positive report on them.

Oswago claimed the ministry and officials from the High Commission in India had written to IEBC, urging it not to grant the tender to 4G, alleging that the company had been blacklisted by the United Identification Authority of India.

“4G wrote to us complaining that the negative report given to us about them was a punishment for failing to pay the bribe,” said Oswago, producing the letter from the Indian company.

He revealed that the company had even been told by the alleged Mboya the MP through whom the bribe was to be paid.

Oswago produced two letters, one by the then Kenyan High Commissioner in India and another one by the Foreign Affairs Ministry signed by an Ambassador John Lanasunya, asking them not to engage with 4G as it was a blacklisted company

“This was shocking because we had not asked them of their opinion on this company. Why were they so keen to volunteer this unsolicited information could only be a matter of speculation,” said Oswago.

Procurement laws

But Oswago had difficulties defending himself from allegations that he unilaterally terminated the procurement process, even as he detailed how two tender committees had violated procurement laws, in what appeared to have been a push to give the tender to the wrong person.

He said the first tender committee chaired by then Legal Affairs Director Praxedes Tororey resigned after it came to his knowledge that she had deep rooted interests in the tender.

He alleged that Tororey had insisted on wanting to go to India for due diligence mission, but was denied the chance since she was a member of the tender committee.

He said on July 17, 2012, they reconstituted the tender committee, which rejected the tender to go to 4G. Surprisingly, the committee also proposed the tender to be awarded to Face Technologies, which had come third after Symphony Company and 4G in the second evaluation report.

Oswago was hard-pressed to explain who had sanctioned the termination of the tender and communication of the same to the media.

“From the foregoing it appears that you unilaterally terminated this tender, without even seeking the approval of the same from the commissioners. This is specifically what the Auditor General is saying, you cannot defend that which is very obvious,” said Imbalambala MP Abdikadir Aden.

But Oswago maintained that the move was sanctioned by IEBC Chairman Issack Hassan and the eight commissioners. However, his defence was found wanting after it was established that the communication to the media about the cancellation was done before the commission sat to make its final determination of the tender.