Auctions set to resume at port
Hundreds of imported cars await to be cleared at a local Clearing Freight Station (CFS) in Mombasa in this file picture. Buyers of vehicles that are more than three years old from the date of registration will pay Sh50,000 more in excise duty. FILE
What you need to know:
- New rules expected to govern public sale after re-opening
- The traders petitioned the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) which demanded to be supplied with copies of listed goods, valuation, inspection reports, payment authorisation slips and cash/cheque deposit slips and the entire auction report.
Public auctions at Mombasa Port are expected to resume after a two-month suspension over corruption allegations.
New procedures aimed at sealing loopholes unscrupulous traders use to undercut others or engage in graft will soon be introduced, said Ms Fatma Yusuf, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officer in charge of marketing and communication in Mombasa on Wednesday.
“We are putting in place administrative measures to govern the conduct of auctions in order to address issues raised by stakeholders,” said Ms Yusuf.
She added the changes would be announced early next month.
The official did not divulge details about the new rules, saying KRA was consulting stakeholders to ensure the regulations were inclusive.
However, a source from the port community told the Nation that one of the measures will be to deploy auction managers on a rotational basis, to prevent them being compromised by sleazy dealers.
“There is a tendency by some buyers to bribe KRA officials, but if they are sent from Nairobi regularly, it will be difficult to compromise them,” said the source.
A trader who takes part in the auctions, Mr Joseph Gakuru, said: “Sometimes members of a cartel place high bids on items that would ordinarily cost less to lock out other people. When they win, they bribe officers and pay the actual value of the goods.”
After the last auction on March 18, traders accused managers of irregularities, and claimed that some of the lots that had been listed for sale were not presented.
They claimed that 168 items were listed but only 30, worth between Sh15 million and Sh20 million were auctioned while the rest worth more than Sh100 million were sold through underhand deals.
The traders petitioned the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) which demanded to be supplied with copies of listed goods, valuation, inspection reports, payment authorisation slips and cash/cheque deposit slips and the entire auction report.
Yesterday, EACC spokesman Yasin Amaro said they were still probing the process and analysing crucial documents. “Besides the documents submitted by KRA our investigators have obtained other papers,” he told the Nation by phone.
Imported goods that are unclaimed for more than 21 days are usually transferred to the customs warehouse and entered into the auction list.
However, some dishonest importers fail to clear their cargo through the normal procedures and wait until they are listed for auction to obtain them by cutting deals.
