This archive report was first published on 14 July 2019.
Published on July 14, 2019, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has given the Ministry of Labour until close of business on Monday to provide documents on the auction of top-of-the-range vehicles belonging to the government at throwaway prices.
The committee, chaired by Opiyo Wandayi, directed PS Peter Tum to hand over authenticated records of the auction, including the particulars of bidders and corresponding bid prices, as well as the eventual winners and the prices paid.
Mr. Wandayi specifically requested the full names and addresses of the eventual buyers of these vehicles, as well as the names of individuals who came up with the reserve prices in both the Ministry of Labour and the State Department for Transport.
PS Tum told MPs that the Transport ministry gave its Labour counterpart the low bid prices that auctioneers used as a guide to sell the luxury cars.
However, Auditor-General Edward Ouko reckons there was collusion between government officers, auctioneering firm, and other parties to set the low prices, leading to the loss of public funds and assets.
Mr. Ouko pointed out that the vehicles were grossly undervalued, with some being sold below the bid prices and others attracting extraordinary bids.
For instance, a VW Passat with no visible damage had a reserve price of Sh30,000 and attracted a bid price of Sh100,000 but was sold for only Sh32,000. Another Nissan Patrol had a reserve price of Sh131,000 but was sold for Sh145,000, despite attracting a bid price of Sh2.1 million.
