The Kenyan government’s procurement of cooking oil has come under scrutiny as a Senate inquiry revealed that standard procedures were bypassed in awarding contracts worth millions of shillings.
The revelation came during a hearing by the Senate Standing Committee on Trade, Industrialization and Tourism, which is investigating the controversial importation of cooking oil by the Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC).
Ruth Kinyanjui, Director of Charma Holdings Limited, one of the suppliers involved in the procurement, disclosed that her company was approached directly by KNTC, circumventing usual tendering processes. “The opportunity to supply was communicated via email by a KNTC officer,” Ms Kinyanjui told the committee. She added that “no pre-qualification or gazetting process was involved” in the selection of suppliers.
The hearing, chaired by Senator Lenku Ole Kanar Seki of Kajiado, sought to unravel the details of the cooking oil importation, which has raised questions about transparency and adherence to procurement regulations. The inquiry was initiated following a request from Senator Mohamed Chute, who called for clarity on the quantities and costs associated with the importation.
Lucy Anangwe, KNTC’s General Manager for Strategy, Risk, and Compliance, provided testimony on the scale of the procurement. According to Ms Anangwe, KNTC contracted the purchase of 2,517,788 jerrycans of edible cooking oil from three main suppliers: Multi Commerce FZC, Charma Holdings Limited, and Shehena Commodity. The bulk of the order, 1,971,794 jerrycans, was allocated to Multi Commerce FZC.
Ms Kinyanjui’s company, Charma Holdings, was contracted to supply 599,224 twenty-litre jerrycans but delivered 499,224 jerrycans. When questioned about the shortfall, Ms Kinyanjui did not provide a clear explanation for the discrepancy.
The revelation that standard procurement procedures were not followed has raised concerns among committee members. Senator Jackson Mandago and Senator Okiya Omtatah questioned the criteria and transparency involved in appointing the procurement committee and selecting suppliers.
In response to these concerns, Ms Anangwe stated that the procurement was conducted under “special circumstances” but requested additional time to provide a more comprehensive submission on the matter. This response has left many questions unanswered and prompted the committee to demand further investigation.
The lack of a formal tendering process for such a significant government contract has alarmed industry observers. John Mwangi, an independent procurement analyst not involved in the hearing, commented: “Bypassing standard procurement procedures, especially for contracts of this magnitude, raises serious questions about fairness and value for money. It also potentially exposes the government to legal challenges from other potential suppliers who were not given the opportunity to bid.”
The committee has resolved to delve deeper into the matter. Senator Seki has directed that the entire KNTC Board be summoned to provide full disclosure on the corporation’s role in the procurement process. The Board will also need to address the absence of a substantive CEO and furnish a complete list of suppliers involved.
Additionally, the committee has requested that original tender documents, agreements signed before and after contract amendments, and evidence of any refunded payments be submitted within a week. Other suppliers who failed to appear at the initial hearing, including Multi Commerce Exports FZC, Purma Holdings Limited, and Shehena Commodity Trading Limited, will be re-invited to testify.
