The promise of a new Sub-County Education Office for the people of Malindi represented more than bricks and mortar. It was meant to improve public services, strengthen education administration and demonstrate that taxpayers’ money was being put to good use.
Instead, the project became the centre of a corruption case that has now ended in criminal convictions.
The Malindi Chief Magistrate’s Court has found a senior National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) official and a private contractor guilty over the irregular award of a Sh19 million construction tender, concluding that public procurement rules were deliberately ignored and key documents were forged to secure the lucrative contract.
The court convicted Wachu Omar Abdallah, the NG-CDF Malindi Fund Account Manager, for unlawfully awarding the contract to Multserve Contractors Limited in May 2018 without obtaining the mandatory professional opinion required under Kenya’s procurement laws.
The tender, worth more than KSh19 million, was for the construction of the Malindi Sub-County Education Office Block.
The contractor’s director, Robert Katana Wanje, was also found guilty after the court heard that he forged crucial tender documents—including a curriculum vitae, a craft certificate and audited financial statements—to give his company an unfair advantage during the bidding process.
In his judgment, Chief Magistrate John N. Muniu ruled that the prosecution had presented consistent and credible evidence through more than ten witnesses, dismissing the defence as unconvincing.
The court found that the actions of the two men undermined the integrity of public procurement, a system designed to ensure fairness, transparency and value for taxpayers.
Abdallah was fined Sh400,000 or face six years in prison, while Wanje was fined Sh200,000 on each of the four counts against him or serve concurrent prison terms if he fails to pay. Both have 14 days to appeal.
Led by Principal Prosecution Counsels Martin Kariuki, Alex Ndiema, Godfrey Ngige and Henrietta Mburu, the prosecution argued that accountability in the management of public resources is essential if communities are to benefit from development projects funded by taxpayers.
Beyond the courtroom, the verdict sends a broader message: when procurement laws are ignored and public contracts are manipulated, it is ordinary citizens who pay the price through delayed services, diminished trust and lost opportunities for development.
The conviction serves as another reminder that safeguarding public funds is ultimately about protecting the communities they are meant to serve.
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