Railways deal angers PIC

• Committee queries move to keep broke RVR on board, calls for thorough probe

Top government officials have been summoned to explain their reasons for extending a concession deal with the troubled Rift Valley Railways company.

The Public Investments Committee said the officials went ahead to extend the pact despite its recommendation that the deal be terminated “immediately.”

Attorney General Amos Wako, head of Civil Service Francis Muthaura, Transport permanent secretary Cyrus Njiru and his Finance counterpart Joseph Kinyua are expected to appear before the PIC “as soon as possible” to explain why they saw it fit to flout Parliament’s order.

Committee chair Mithika Linturi and members Luka Kigen and John Mbadi yesterday said the four had to explain why they saw it fit to stick by the contract despite overwhelming evidence that the concessionaire had flopped in service provision and “was clearly not abiding by the concession agreement”.

“We want to know the status of the concession as at now and why they thought the extension was valid,” said Mr Linturi. “We feel that the manner in which this matter is being handled is not going to serve public interest.”

This comes against a backdrop of fire fighting between the Kenyan and Ugandan governments to save the concession, while RVR is itself locked in boardroom wrangles with some of the key shareholders — TransCentury (Kenya) and Citadel (Egypt).

Already, the shareholders have raised Sh63 billion to save the concession after a team comprising Kenyan and Ugandan officials moved to terminate the contract.

But Mr Linturi said the concessionaire did not meet his part of the contract “for the money which came in was very negligible compared to what was agreed by the government of Kenya and Uganda.”

Transport minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere was also on the PIC’s receiving end for acceding to “indulge the concessionaire” when a termination notice had already been issued.

Mr Mbadi added: “If the minister was to give any extension, he had to make sure that he had the advice of experts — the Kenya Railways. He appears not to have done so, therefore his was a political decision rather than a prudent economic one.”

In its 16th report on the status of State corporations, the PIC recommended that Mr Kinyua, Mr Mwakwere, the then Finance minister Amos Kimunya and Investments Secretary Esther Koimett be investigated for the role they played in the concession agreement, and their proposal was approved by Parliament as being in the public’s interest.