Rift Valley Water Agency CEO Kicked Out of Office
Central Rift Valley Water Works Chief Executive Officer Samuel Oruma has been sent on leave following an ongoing investigation into alleged procurement faults.
The directive was issued last week by the head of the public service, Felix Koskei.
The procurement of Ksh1.7 billion for the Longisa-Mulot Water Project in Bomet County is under investigation due to the ouster of Oruma from his position on September 26.
“Why are you chasing me away and there is no scandal I have committed?” he queried.
According to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the CEO awarded China Railways No. 10 Engineering Group Ltd. the contract in an improper manner.
EACC also accused Oruma of improperly substituting inferior glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) pipelines for the steel pipes that were intended for use in the project.
After serving the CEO of Central Rift Valley Water Works with a suspension notice, police officers ejected him without ceremony in full view of the cameras.
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Oruma was escorted off the premises while visibly shaken, much to the astonishment of the company’s employees.
He denied all allegations made against him, alleging he was the victim of a witch hunt orchestrated by Koskei.
“He has on several occasions written other letters not only that one, asking the same board to push the CEO out even including matters concerning tribal balance which the CEO does not really control,” Oruma stated.
Additionally, he distanced himself from the Bomet Project corruption allegations by asserting that no funds were misappropriated.
“I want to set the record straight, there is no money lost in Bomet block. The investigation being done is about the tendering process which was done by my predecessor. I only got to be the CEO when the project is ongoing,” he declared.
The former CEO maintained that he was only responsible for ensuring that the purchases approved by his predecessor were made.
Oruma’s dismissal comes days after Athi Water Works Development Agency CEO Engineer Michael Thuita resigned in response to identical allegations of irregularly awarding contracts.
Rift Valley Water Agency CEO Kicked Out of Office
