The Public Procurement Administrative Review Board (PPARB) is under scrutiny for allegedly favoring Jiangsu Rainbow Industrial Equipment Company, a Chinese firm, in the tender process associated with application No. 41/2024 of May 2024, which is linked to tender No. KPA 1156/2023-24.
This tender involved the design, manufacture, supply, testing, and commissioning of 10 rubber-tyred gantry cranes.
The PPARB, chaired by Joshua Kiptoo, with members Susan Mambo and Alexander Musau, has drawn suspicion due to the involvement of Philemon Kiprop and Anthony Simiyu from its secretariat, raising questions about potential favoritism, particularly given the Kalenjin background of the chair and secretariat members.
Reports suggest that former Infrastructure and Roads Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, now at the Ministry of Sports, was lobbying on behalf of Jiangsu Rainbow.
The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) had initiated the tender process through a restricted bidding method, inviting three companies to participate, with an initial submission deadline of April 4.
However, the deadline was suspiciously extended to April 11, purportedly to clarify certain issues, but critics argue that the extension primarily benefited Jiangsu Rainbow.
KPA records indicate that Jiangsu Rainbow was the only company to submit a bid by the revised deadline.
This raised concerns, particularly since the extension seemed to favor only this firm.
The evaluation committee eventually awarded Jiangsu Rainbow a contract valued at USD 21,200,000, equivalent to approximately KSh 56 billion at current exchange rates.
Documents have revealed the involvement of KPA’s Supply Chain Management General Manager, Eveline Shigholi, in the evaluation process, allegedly influencing the committee’s recommendation in favor of Jiangsu.
The firm, notorious for using lobbying and bribery to win tenders, was formally notified of the award on April 26, 2024.
Jiangsu Rainbow, a company located in Suzhou, Jiangsu, China, with Zhang Xiaobo as a director, is alleged to have leveraged its connections with Murkomen, who, during his tenure as Transport CS, had visited China multiple times.
Further developments suggest that the new Transport and Infrastructure CS, Davis Chirchir, is also involved in supporting Jiangsu’s business interests, potentially with backing from State House.
ZMPC, a competing firm, contested the tender process, arguing that KPA had erred in treating it as a brand rather than a legitimate tenderer.
KPA dismissed ZMPC’s claims, stating that tender documents were issued only to Jiangsu Rainbow, Mitsui E&S Machinery Limited, and Zhenhua Port Machinery Corporation.
Allegations suggest that Zhenhua Port Machinery Corporation withdrew from the bidding process due to the high bribes demanded by Murkomen’s aides.
Despite the controversies surrounding the tender process, the PPARB ruled in favor of Jiangsu, raising further suspicions about the impartiality of the board.
The ruling has prompted questions about the firm’s sudden acquisition of intellectual property rights related to the Kalmar brand, which Jiangsu claimed to have purchased from the Cargotec Group.
The involvement of powerful individuals like Murkomen and Chirchir has sparked widespread concern about the integrity of the procurement process and the potential loss of public funds.
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