The Chief Executive Officer of Web Tribe which trades as Jambopay Mr Danson Muchemi has recorded a statement with police linking his recent road accdient on the Nyahururu – Gilgil road to a strange phone call he received from embattled Nairobi County Governor Mike Sonko threatening him with dire consequences.
The CEO recorded a statement at Kilimani Police Station in Nairobi, under OB number 36/22/2/2020.
Mr Muchemi said he was involved in a suspicious accident on Nyahururu-Gilgil Road at about 10.30am on February 9.
He said a lorry rammed into his vehicle near Pembrooke House, leaving him with head injuries that forced his admission at Aga Khan Hospital for a week. Mr Muchemi said that on February 20 at about 8.26am while he was in Westlands, he received a call from a person who identifid himself as Mike Sonko; the person was very angry and told him that ‘you have let me down, i’m now facing impeachment, be caeful”.
The fall out between the two have worsened with an out of office Mike Sonko facing investigations by Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (EACC) and a possible impeachment following the revelations of irregular procurement of garbage services amounting to Sh357.4 million.
Web tribe CEO Danson Muchemi was listed as one of the witnesses.
How authorities stumbled upon a scandal
Trouble started after a search was conducted on the vehicle reported to have been deployed to carry garbage turned out to be saloon cars, motorcycles, and vans with no capacity to carry garbage.
The Nairobi County procurement committee on June 4, 2018, reported that six bidders for a garbage collection tender were responsive and qualified to be awarded the contract. However, City Hall settled on Hardi Enterprises – whose directors they claim were known to Sonko even before he was elected governor.
However, EACC said six firms were made to bid for the garbage deal in a stage-managed process in which the results had been predetermined.
Firms which bid for the tender were: Purlexis Enterprises, Hardi Enterprises, Tusma Trading Company, Acacia Equipment, Bonfide General Contractors, Acacia Equipment, Bonfide General Contractors, and Daasanach Construction Ltd all bid for the garbage collection job.
Hardi Enterprises which the procurement committee had settled on were was given a contract in contravention of procurement law because it did not provide a VAT compliance certificate, according to EACC. The directors Antony Mwaura and his wife Rose Njeri, who Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Haji have indicted and ordered arrested, were paid Sh357.4 million in five months.
The same coule above concidentally owned anotehr firm Toddy Engineering Limited which received a transfer of Sh55.8 million between October 2017 and March 2018, the Governor is said to have benefitted from a kickback of Sh3 million from this firm, in his account held at Equity Bank.
The governor is accused of receiving Sh39 million from a long list of firms and of the total Sh8.6 million he received before 2017.
EACC further states that the governor received some other Sh27.4 million from Amaco through Arbab Auto (Sh17 million), Yiro Enterprises (Sh8.4 million), and Webtribe (Sh 2 million).
It is in this regard that DPP ordered the arrest of Antony Ombok – the director of Arbab Auto, ROG Security, and High Energy Petroleum Ltd – suppliers of fuel, vehicle spare parts and lubricants.
Also sought by police is Danson Muchemi and Robert Muriithi – directors of Web Tribe Ltd and Zablon Onyango – an agent of the revenue collection firm trading as JamboPay. This is the beginning of the sour relationship between Sonko and Muchemi.
Haji also ordered the arrest of Fredrick Odhiambo of Yiro Enterprises, parties that would be charged with economic crimes.
Danson Muchemi was also mentioned in a Sh1.1 billion National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) fraud. The CEO disappeared fro a while becasue of this and sued DPP and Directorate of Criminal Investogations (DCI) and Attorney General in a bid to stop his ongoing trial over the NHIF scandal.
Fast forward to June 2019, Nairobi County Government decided not to extend Jambopay’s contract for revenue collection in the city.
Jambopay had been brought onboard by former Nairobi County Governor Evans Kidero despite being the most expesive in terms of fee charges.
Web Tribe which was offering a charge of 4.5 per cent was picked despite the fact that Virtual Mobile and Craft Silicon were offering to charge 2.5 per cent of collections in fees. In 2015, Member of Parliament had petieoned EACC to probe Kidero over the JamboPay deal.
This was the beginning of a scandal according to experts and one that will see Dansom Muchemi become a fugitive from the law during Sonko’s tenure.
Kenyan Business Feed is the top Kenyan Business Blog. We share news from Kenya and across the region. To contact us with any alert, please email us to [email protected]
