We trace how Kenyans continue to pay heavily for the mistakes of patronage-based appointments to government agencies. ILLUSTRATION | NATION MEDIA GROUP In 2014 some 15 State corporations made Sh21.2 billion in profits.
In the years that followed, patronage-based appointments of incompetent managers, tough economic conditions and corruption have seen them deliver just Sh3.7 billion by 2017.
Smart Company looks at what went wrong with the development model through State-owned enterprises and failed reforms even as the din to re-nationalise Kenya Airways is being peddled as the solution for the ailing national carrier.
The iconic Kenyatta International Convention Centre at the heart of Kenya’s capital has been a symbol of political fortunes much as it has defined the country.
During the Kibaki presidency, it defined the spirit of a country dispossessed by decades under President Moi and the willingness to take back what had been plundered from public coffers to sustain a narrow elite represented by Kanu.
When Narc swept into power, it forcibly wrestled it away from the party in 2003 and set in motion efforts to rebrand and reinvent it to become a leading venue for regional and international conferences.
However to date, the land on which the monument stands, valued at Sh1 billion in 2006, is not registered in the name of the corporation.
Over the past decade, KICC has come to symbolise the rot in State corporations as management and boards loot national resources and leave a legacy where profits from national firms have fallen eightfold while several other companies are in a state of flux or collapsing.
According to the Auditor-General’s reports, KICC bought three vehicles in 2017 for Sh20.8 million but they were registered to Kenyatta International Conference Centre Management Ltd. While these might appear to be the same institution, that is not the case; it was just a simple trick to throw auditors off the scent but the ploy was caught.
“A scrutiny of the logbooks shows that the three vehicles were registered in the name of Kenyatta International Conference Centre Management Ltd and not in the name of the corporation,” the auditor said.
“Although it was explained that the problem rose as a result of a PIN mix-up at the Kenya Revenue Authority, the issue has not been resolved with a view of having the logbooks issued in the name of Kenyatta International Convention Centre,” the auditor said.Such boldness in State circles has been cultivated over […]
