Officers from the Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (EACC) are currently raiding Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (Kemsa) offices along commercial street in Industrial area, Nairobi.
According to sources who spoke to this writer, the officers are taking away computers.
The sources also revealed that all staff at Kemsa have been locked inside as the operation goes on.
The officers are following up on the Kemsa scandal that saw billions of shillings disappear in the hands of rogue suppliers.
KEMSA is under fire over allegations government officials and businessmen pilfered Ksh 4 billion in public money earmarked for medical equipment needed in the fight against coronavirus.
President Uhuru Kenyatta had instructed the anti-corruption commission to expedite its investigation into KEMSA, which is responsible for supplying Kenya’s overwhelmed hospitals treating coronavirus patients. KEMSA’s CEO and other top officials have been stood down.
President Kenyatta also said the health ministry had 30 days to develop a “transparent” system so that KEMSA’s procurement processes could be published online.
“This level of transparency and through the use of technology, will go a very along way in ensuring that we have the confidence of our people that those placed in institutions are able to manage the resources of the Kenyan taxpayer plus our development partners in an open and transparent manner,” the president said in a statement.
The KEMSA scandal came after Kenyan investigators vowed a separate inquiry into the alleged theft of PPE supplies donated by Chinese billionaire and Alibaba founder Jack Ma.
The allegations of graft and misappropriation surfaced as new infections of Covid-19 soared across Kenya, though numbers have dipped in recent weeks.
