Former
Kenya National Examination Council chairman Paul Wasanga is alleged to have
received kickbacks amounting to Sh703,785 for every year that he awarded
tenders for printing of examination documents to British firm Smith and Ouzman.
The
damning allegations surfaced in an ongoing fraud case before the Southwark
Crown Court in London, UK where the firm is accused of unduly influencing
tendering processes for organisations in foreign countries.
This is
in contravention of the European nation’s Prevention of Corruption Act (1906)
which bars undue influence on employees of foreign governments to have
decisions made in favour of British businesses.
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Former KNEC chairman Paul Wasanga
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Although
the prosecution lawyers and the forensic experts from the Serious Fraud Office
who have pressed the charges are yet to establish how many years Wasanga
received the kickbacks, they have said that in 2009 and 2010 alone, the Kenya
government through the Ministry of Education paid a Sh40 million to Smith and
Ouzman for Optical Mark Reader forms used in KCPE examinations, certificates,
photo collection forms and mark sheets.
“The
corrupt payments were built into Smith and Ouzman’s pricing of the printed
materials so that the inflation in the price as a result of that corruption was
passed onto those funding the institutions that contracted with Smith and
Ouzman,” prosecution lawyers said according to court documents.
In the
duration of the dealings between Knec and Smith and Ouzman, the court was also
furnished with details of Wasanga’s annual trips to the UK, fully paid for by
the printing firm to maintain a work relationship.
The court
documents further detail proceedings in which prosecution said that Knec
officials Mwai Nyaga the deputy CEO, Geoffrey Gitogo the ICT manager, Ephraim
Wanderi and Michael Ndua the principal supplies officer each received Sh90,000
to facilitate the awarding of the tenders.
Smith and
Ouzman’s country agent Trevy James Oyombra received authorisation from the
firm’s top brass, which was mainly the former chairman Christopher Smith and
his son Nick Smith the sales and marketing director, to pay the Knec officials
after receiving payment for the examination documents.
The court
also heard how Smith and Ouzman extended the gratuity payments and gestures to
the family of the Knec officials, a thing which Christopher Smith said was
above board as they were gifts given to the families of friends.
“There is
nothing wrong in giving gifts to a friend. It was, however, no coincidence that
the gifts to Wanderi’s son were made at the time Smith and Ouzman were on a
drive to get back the business with Knec which they had lost,” the prosecutor
told the court.
