This archive report was first published on 23 July 2019.
On July 9, 2019, Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji and DCI director George Kinoti jetted in from their two-week visit in Italy, marking the beginning of the end for Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich.
Rotich's downfall was a long time coming, with sources close to him revealing that he had foreseen his arrest, prosecution, and sacking from the Cabinet almost three months ago.
According to sources, Rotich's seniors in government had stopped picking up his calls, leaving him feeling frustrated and betrayed.
Rotich's goose started cooking early this year when he was summoned to the DCI headquarters for questioning over the dams scandal. He was first questioned by Police on February 18, 2019, and made four more visits to the DCI as investigations progressed.
Rotich's close ties with President Uhuru Kenyatta, forged during their time at Treasury, proved to be no shield against the wrath of the law. When Treasury CS was sucked into the dams scandal, their close ties with the Head of State vaporised, and President Uhuru vowed that all top government officials implicated in corruption would carry their own cross.
Rotich was arrested yesterday, almost immediately after the DCI director and DPP jetted in from Italy. The investigations established that government officials flouted all procurement rules and abused their oath of office to ensure the scheme went through, said DPP Haji in a press briefing.
According to records, a leading supermarket was paid Sh4 million for supplying pillows and bedsheets, while a food and wine company based in Nairobi's Lavington was paid Sh15 million for supplying food and wines to CMC. Car hire services costed Sh7 million, while Sh18 million was used for aerial survey services and another company supplied alleged foodstuff worth Sh10.2 million.
