Kiambu Governor Waititu, wife charged with graft

Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu has Monday been charged with six counts over a Sh580 million irregular tender.

Mr Waititu has been charged alongside his wife Susan Wangari Ndung’u and eight others at the Milimani Law Courts following a recommendation by Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji last Friday.

Among the eight suspects are Kiambu County employees. Three companies have also been charged.

The governor was accused of conflict of interest and dealing with suspect property.

SURRENDER

Mr Waititu and his wife surrendered at Integrity Centre after dodging detectives for two days. Mr Waititu turned himself in at 9:30am while the wife sneaked in at 2pm. They spent the night at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) detention.

The anti-graft agency has been investigating allegations of irregular procurement of a tender for the upgrading of various gravel roads to bituminous surface in Kiambu County.

PROBE

The tender under investigations, worth Sh588 million, was awarded to M/s Testimony Enterprises Ltd during the 2017/2018 financial year.

The EACC has established that Testimony Enterprise owned by a Mr Charles Chege and Ms Beth Wangeci Mburu, who were close associates of the governor, had earlier been paid Sh147.3 million.

They were then paid the Sh588 million for a tender to upgrade various roads as had been advertised by the county on February 12 on Business Daily newspaper under the tender title “Proposed improvement of various gravel roads to bituminous standards in Kiambu”.

The projects, according to the county’s estimates, were to cost Sh610 million with each kilometre gobbling up Sh29 million.