On Tuesday, a Kirinyaga County ward representative was charged with defrauding the Kenya Ports Authority of $76,347.35 (Sh8.8 million).
Mr Kamau Murango, a United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Senate candidate, was charged alongside Ms Lilian Kemunto, who was not present in court.
As directors of Ports & Harbours Support Services, they defrauded the KPA by obtaining taxpayer funds to supply Grove crane spare parts.
They were also accused of two counts of forgery, two counts of uttering a false document, and two counts of procurement fraud.
Before Mombasa Senior Resident Magistrate Martin Rabera, Mr Murango denied the charges and was released on a Sh1 million bond with a surety of the same amount or Sh100,000 cash bail.
They are accused of forging a letter dated March 15, 2020, purporting to be from Manitowoc Crane Group.
They are also accused of forging a Manitowoc bid letter dated March 18, 2020, which they claimed was issued by the company.
Prosecutors also claim that on January 24, 2020, at the KPA headquarters in Mombasa, the two uttered the documents to the head of procurement and supplies, claiming that they were genuine.
The documents were required in the tender bidding, according to the court.
Mr Murango told the court through his lawyers, led by Mr Danstan Omari, that the charges against him were a political witch hunt because the complainant confirmed that his signature was not forged.
“The accused is being brought to you not because the Directorate of Criminal Investigations has evidence against him, but because the Principal Secretary (for Interior) has overruled the DCI,” Mr Omari told the court.
Mr Murango’s arrest and arraignment, the lawyer claimed, was to allow Ms Martha Karua, the running mate of the Azimio One Kenya coalition party, “to go to a homecoming visit on Tuesday.”
Mr. Omari also told the court that the MCA was in court because he refused to pass the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) bill after being pressured to do so.
Ms Kemunto had not been summoned to court, he said, but he would make sure she appeared next week to answer the charges.
On May 31, the case will be discussed.
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