An anti-corruption court in Nairobi will today sentence former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Ndung’u Waititu after he was found guilty of various charges in a Ksh588 million road tender graft case.
Alongside his wife, Susan Wangari Ndung’u; Charles Chege and Beth Mburu, two of the top directors of one of their companies, Testimony Enterprises Ltd, which was directly involved in the case; and Luka Mwangi Wahinya, a former Kiambu County Government Chief Officer for Roads, they will be sentenced after the court determined that they pocketed the money meant for a contract to upgrade various gravel roads to bituminous standard in Thika, Limuru, Gatundu North, Juja and Ruiru sub-counties in the financial year 2017/2018.
According to evidence presented at trial and public filings submitted by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) before Chief Magistrate Thomas Nzioki of the Milimani Law Courts’ Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Division, the illegal actions of the five date back to 2017, when Waititu was serving as the second Kiambu Governor.
The court found that he himself had illegally obtained an indirect personal interest of Ksh25,624,500 from Testimony Enterprises Ltd, the contractor that was irregularly awarded the road tender by the Kiambu County Government, and he channelled this interest through his other companies registered under his wife while he served as governor.
The wife, trading as Bienvenue Delta Hotel, was convicted on the third and fourth counts for receiving Ksh7,214,000 from Testimony Enterprises Ltd, knowing that the money had been acquired from the Kiambu County Government through corrupt conduct.
The charges, which included, among others, fraud, conflict of interest, money laundering and dealings with suspicious property, stemmed from an extensive investigation launched in March 2017 by the EACC, which also revealed that the ex-governor had used his powerful position to order Wahinya, the former Chief Officer for Roads, to improperly award the contract, said to be worth a total of Ksh588,198,328, to Testimony Enterprises Ltd. Wahinya was subsequently found guilty of abuse of office.
Meanwhile, Chege and Mburu, co-directors of Testimony Enterprises Ltd, were convicted of fraudulent practices and illegal acquisition of public property, having received Ksh147,274,055 from the county government through the tainted contract.
As the court prepares to deliver its final verdict, today marks yet another chapter in Kenya’s long-running battle against corruption in high office. Will justice prevail? Only time will tell.
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