Kenya medical supplies agency – KEMSA is a state agency on the brink as yet again multimillion procurement malfeasance has been unearthed barely a fortnight since the covid-19 supplies exaggeration of prices , single sourcing of the tenders, flouting of procurement guidelines and mysterious donations of Chinese billionaire philanthropist, jack ma widely reported by NTV’s Dennis Okari in report dubbed #CovidMillionaires.
The agency marred serious accountability issues has since suspended its chief executive officer and two directors.
However, the latest scam exposes deeper the extent of rot in agency supplies worth sh.1.2 billion meant for HIV/AIDS patients hasn’t been supplied to NASCOP. The critical drugs unavailability has seen affected patients suffer tremendously with reports that one patient has died due to drugs absence. KEMSA accused of not promptly and urgently addressing the challenge.
The HIV/AIDS patients will have no choice but buy drugs at inflated prices from private facilities or go without in an apparent assault to the fight against the HIV epidemic.
Barely a month since KEMSA became target of probe as it emerged that they purchased grossly inflated Covid-19 supplies handing billions to profiteers’ businessmen. The N95(1860) masks for instance was purchased with sh. 1300 against the market price of sh. 700 per piece while for KN95 masks that’ goes for sh.400 in the market, they purchased with sh.700. the bulk buying should have even made the supplies cheaper but instead almost doubled.
In the August 3rd report by the Nation, which exposed how the millions spent and supplies involved, KEMSA procurement mishaps or the official’s conspiracy to fleece the taxpayers was subject to intense public scrutiny as firms and individuals were awarded improperly billion-dollar tenders despite glaring procurement flags that could have denied them.
Kilig limited for example was one such company created by Ivy Onyango on Jan 2nd 2020, handpicked and handed sh.4Billion tender to supply thousands of PPEs with apiece costing sh.9000 while the market then was sh.4500 as per parliamentary papers.
The Kits consist of N95 Mask, Body suit, goggles, water-proof shoes and gloves and as per the tender the Kilig company was to supply 450,000 pieces of each of the items. However, the company just founded barely 6-months ago had no capacity to deliver on such a humongous tender while the inability of the KEMSA executives to seek proof or record of ability put the executives on the spot and effectively on the EACC radar.
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