Graft: Senior KPA staff sacked in major reshuffle
Kenya Ports Authority headquarters in Mombasa.
What you need to know:
- he department also saw over 15 staffers affected in the changes, with most being sent packing.
- Head of Container Terminal Edward Opiyo has also been demoted to principal officer.
- Those at the Inland Container Depot in Nairobi have also been affected by the purge.
Senior Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) officials have been sacked and others moved in a major reshuffle at the graft-rocked parastatal, as the management moves to clamp down on irregularities within its procurement cadres that has cost it hundreds of millions in revenue.
The purge comes six months after KPA’s Board Risk and Audit Committee recommended that several senior managers in the finance, procurement and engineering departments face disciplinary action, including being forced to refund money lost, over several tender malpractices in the organisation.
The hardest-hit department is procurement, which saw its acting head Adza Dzengo sacked over graft allegations. The department also saw over 15 staffers affected in the changes, with most being sent packing.
Mr Dzengo, who was once in the list of those mentioned in the Sh40 billion Kipevu Oil Terminal tender scandal, has been dismissed for circumventing procurement processes. “The offences you committed amounts to gross misconduct,” reads in part the letter signed by acting managing director Rashid Salim.
Prior to his promotion, Mr Dzengo served as the Tender Opening and Evaluation Committee secretary till May last year.
Demoted
The Nation understands that the Head of Container Terminal Edward Opiyo has also been demoted to principal officer within the same department and sent to Lamu, while the KPA head of liaison markets Anthony Nyamancha, based in Kampala, has also been sent home.
Mr Nyamancha formerly served as the Head of Procurement before he was sent to Kampala in May last year, following the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission investigations into the Kipevu Oil Terminal tendering issues.
The changes have also seen Mr Alfred Masha, the authority’s acting general manager for Infrastructure development, sent on early retirement. Mr Masha, who is said to have worked for the agency for over 25 years, was sent on early retirement over what was termed as lack of “disciplinary mitigation” by the management.
At least 35 other staff have been redeployed from other departments to the human resource and civil engineering departments, where eight have been moved.
Among them is Mr Ali Masemo, a senior accountant who has been sent from the civil engineering department to human resource, despite resistance from a top official.
Warning letter
Documents obtained by the Nation revealed that another senior procurement officer, Mr Ali Mwinjaka, has been given a warning letter over his involvement in “questionable” procurement processes.
Those at the Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Nairobi have also been affected by the purge. The changes were made from September 25 to October 6, documents obtained by the Nation show.
Those sent packing have already been asked to surrender all KPA property in their possession to the management within 72 hours on receipt of the letters dated October 6. “If you are in occupation of KPA house, you are supposed to vacate within 72 hours,” one of the letters says.
Others have been given up to January 2 to vacate the houses.
KPA head of corporate affairs Bernard Osero said: “This is an ongoing human resource activity, and it remains confidential.”
