A Senate committee investigating the multibillion-shilling medical kits leasing scandal has threatened to implicate former Health Principal Secretary Khadijah Kassachoon.
The threat to make the radical recommendation came after Kassachoon failed to adequately respond to issues raised by the ad-hoc committee and to provide supporting documents on the deal.
The panel headed by Isiolo Senator Fatuma Dullo said that the ex-PS’s failure to recall how the Sh63 billion deal was signed showed the extent to which the project was bungled.
Kassachoon signed the Sh38 billion contracts for the Managed Equipment Service (MES) programme in 2015. The contracts were later revised upwards to Sh63 billion.
The committee also grilled Iseme Kamau and Muema Advocates, the law firm that provided legal advice and prepared contract documents.
For four hours, the committee wanted to know the role of IKM Advocates in the project as it had since become controversial.
The firm, which was represented by senior counsel Paul Muite, was hard pressed to explain how it was contracted and whether there was a conflict of interest in its hiring.
In the morning, Kassachoon presented what the committee termed as vague and shallow a three-page document, without annexure.
It was the second time she was appearing to before the panel. The committee sent her away last Friday and asked her to keep in touch with the ministry to provide the responses and relevant documents.
“We have given you a lot of time. Our conclusion is that you have refused to give us information that we requested. The documents you have given us are not signed, no addressee and the content of the response is vague,” Dullo said.
Kitui’s Enoch Wambua said Kassachoon had either refused to provide the information or was clueless on how the government operates.
But the ex-PS defended said she had contacted current PS Susan Mochache to assemble a team and make documents and responses required by the committee available.
“I went to the PS on Friday and she told me that she will put a team and provide the responses. But I have to appear here today (Monday) as directed by the committee,” she said.
In the document Kassachoon presented to the committee, she said adequate needs assessment was done in line with the Health ministry policy before the project was rolled out.
“The counties that had similar equipment to that supplied by the project took the equipment to other facilities that they identified. There were meetings between CS and governors,” she said.
The ex-PS said she was not aware of either PKF and SPA – the firms that provided financial advice to the ministry – or IKM Advocates who gave legal advice.
The responses attracted a barrage of reactions with members demanding to know how she could admit that a needs assessment was done yet some equipment was still idle.
“How can you say you don’t know PFK, SPA and IKM yet they were contracted by the Ministry of Health where you were the accounting officer?” Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang’ula asked.
Kassachoon did not respond, forcing Dullo to adjourn the hearing with stern threat to implicate her in the scandal if she does not provide adequate response by close of business on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the committee put to task the IKM for their role in the project that has since turned controversial.
According to an audit report by former Auditor General Edward Ouko, the ministry handpicked IKM to provide legal advice. The firm drafted contract documents and letters of support given out to the firms.
The law firm, according to the senators, had worked for General Electric East Africa and Philips, two of the firms that won the multibillion-shilling contract.
Muite maintained that the firm was picked by the ministry because it was among those pre-qualified by the Attorney General.
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