Former Treasury CS Henry Rotich is now a happy man after the court acquitted him and 8 others in the Kimwarer Arror Dams case but blamed the prosecution for bungling the case.
Rotich was acquitted alongside former Kerio Valley Development Authority (KVDA) boss David Kimosop, former Chief Economist Kennedy Nyakundi, Jackson Kinyanjui and Titus Muriithi.
Trial Magistrate Eunice Nyutu said there was no evidence tabled in court to show that Rotich and his co-accused failed to follow procurement laws in the dam’s case.
“All the accused persons in this case are whereby a quite sunder section 201 due to lack of evidence as a result of the reckless dereliction of duty by the prosecution,” the court ruled.
However, Nyutu put the blame squarely on the prosecution saying they only brought 8 witnesses when they had lined up 48 witnesses.
The court noted that during their opening statement the prosecution said they intended to call 49 witnesses but along the way they changed their mind and only led 8 witnesses in giving evidence.
“This would appear to be a prosecution led acquittal,” the court ruled.
In the case, Rotich and his co-accused were charged with over 20 counts ranging from conspiracy to defraud the government, willful failure to comply with procurement rules, abuse of office, engaging in projects without prior planning, failing to comply with laws on managing public funds and financial misconduct.
It was alleged that Rotich, Kimosop, Nyakundi, Kinyanjui and Muriithi conspired to defraud the government USD501,829,769 by entering into a contract for construction of the Arror and Kimwarer multi-purpose dams without approval.
“Between December 17, 2014 and January 2019 you jointly conspired to defraud the government of Kenya USD501,829,769 by entering into the construction of the two dams when you knew the project was not approved and failed to comply with applicable laws,”
In their opening statement, the prosecution then led by former DPP Noordin Haji said they had a water tight case and would prove the charge against Rotich and the others.
However, they changed tune after the court declined to grant them an adjournment leading to them closing their case before calling all the other witnesses in protest to the magistrate.
