KAA told to go ahead with airport tender

The Procurement Appeal Board has ordered the Kenya Airports Authority to execute within 30 days, the controversial Sh55 billion tender to build a new terminal.

In what could upset top government officials and the KAA board that had resolved to terminate the contract, the Public Procurement Appeals board also ruled that no one, other than the tender committee had powers to cancel the tender.

“The board invokes its powers and orders the procurement entity (KAA) to execute the contract within 30 days from the day of this ruling,” the order by the Public Procurement Appeals board read by Mr Akichi Okola, said on Wednesday.

The ruling that also dealt a second blow to the government and the KAA board noted that the two had no authority to meddle in an awarded contract.

“Board members of any institution and State actors such as ministers have no powers in the current procurement law to interfere with decision making of any tender process,” Mr Okola said.

The verdict delivered by a seven-member team followed a complaint by the Chinese company that had been awarded the contract and had raised fears that the contract was about to be terminated.

The board ruled that though KAA had not formally entered into a contract to start the process, the fact that the company had been awarded the tender had legal backing.

The ruling is also likely to embolden embattled KAA managing director Stephen Gichuki and Anhui Construction company to go to court to seek damages in case the tender is cancelled given that the firm had already accepted the offer.

This comes a day after an industrial court revoked last week’s suspension of Mr Gichuki at the height of the controversy. (READ: Court orders return of sacked KAA boss)

The ruling further deepens the controversy surrounding Transport Minister Amos Kimunya’s push to cancel the tender.

It also emerged that the minister ignored advice from both the Attorney General and the Public Procurement Oversight Authority not to cancel the tender.

The controversy has sucked in the Cabinet and Parliament, prompting House Speaker Kenneth Marende to order an investigation by the committees on Transport, Finance and Public Works.

It is intriguing that the minister ordered the cancellation while his ministry was appraised at all stages and is represented on the board of directors by the permanent secretary.

It has also surfaced that the board and the management are quoting different price values of the tender. The board cites Sh42 billion whereas the management quotes Sh55 billion.

The tender had been awarded to Anhui Construction Company, a Chinese firm which had already accepted.

Documents from the procurement watchdog show that the tender had indeed been issued on December 16 and a cancellation ordered by the minister on January 10.

The boardroom wars between the KAA chairman and MD point to the high stakes that have defined the Greenfield issue. Mr Kimunya ordered the parastatal to cancel the tender in January.