Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich was recently grilled by the DCI over involvement in Ksh65 billion stalled dam projects. Rotich is said to have recorded a statement on Monday at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations over the Arror and Kimwarer multi-purpose dams in Elgeyo Marakwet County which are currently under construction.
However, Sh15 billions of public money is at risk of being lost as the Italian contractor at the centre of bribery claims involving Kenyan Cabinet Secretaries appears to have left the sites of three mega projects.
This follows claims that CMC Di Ravenna the contractor in the troubled projects was allegedly declared bankrupt at home in Italy and has since abandoned the hydro-power and drinking water projects in Nakuru and Elgeyo Marakwet counties despite receiving a down payment from which it is alleged the kickbacks were paid.
The firm’s Nairobi offices has only retained front office staff while the three site offices remain ghost towns as the ripples of its financial troubles start to be felt. In a wake of events, this week, the firm was kicked out of two mega projects it had been contracted to undertake last year in the South East Asian nation of Nepal. With CMC Di Ravenna running into financial headwinds, there are fears that the Kenyan contracts could be re-awarded, and at extra cost.
