A Nairobi court has acquitted former Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) Managing Director Charles Tanui and former Chief Manager Elias Karumi of corruption charges related to the irregular payment of Sh35 million for the procurement of three auto transformers in 2014.
Milimani Magistrate Victor Wakumile ruled that Tanui and Karumi were not privy to the deliberations of the KPC Tender Committee and thus could not have influenced the procurement process. According to the magistrate, the evidence presented before the court demonstrated that the two officials acted in good faith based on documents presented by various committees involved in the procurement process.
“They acted on the documents presented before them on the basis of mutual trust and are therefore blameless,” Wakumile stated in his ruling. He further noted that there was no evidence to suggest that either Tanui or Karumi abused their offices or personally benefited from the transaction.
The case stemmed from a contract between KPC and Redline Limited for the procurement of new auto transformers to replace damaged ones. Tanui had maintained that the direct procurement of the equipment was approved by the KPC Tender Committee and that he relied on reports from the technical and finance departments to ensure proper procurement procedures were followed.
The court found that the charges against the two appeared to be “weaponized,” with the magistrate expressing concern over the manner in which public servants could be prosecuted despite exonerative evidence. “I shudder to imagine that it is possible for one to give it all in the course of employment only to end up being arraigned before court on charges premised on quicksand,” he remarked.
However, the third accused, Joshat Sirma, was placed on his defense after the court found that there was a prima facie case against him. Sirma, a former KPC official, was accused of knowingly signing an inspection report without lawful authority, falsely certifying the works related to the tender. Magistrate Wakumile stated that reasons for this ruling would be provided at a later stage.
Tanui had faced charges of abuse of office and willful failure to comply with procurement laws. The prosecution alleged that he authorized the payment of 261,070 Euros (approximately Sh35 million) to Redline Limited without a signed contract or prior testing of the equipment. The court’s ruling now clears Tanui and Karumi of any wrongdoing, leaving Sirma to face trial.
This ruling marks a significant development in Kenya’s ongoing fight against corruption, with the judiciary emphasizing the need for due diligence in prosecuting public officers.
