By Dorothy Musyoka
Former Nyandarua County Governor Daniel Waithaka Mwangi has been sentenced to two years in prison or a fine of Ksh. 1 million after being found guilty of procurement irregularities.
The verdict, delivered by Chief Magistrate Hezekiah Keago at the Nyahururu Anti-Corruption Courts, marks another major victory for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in the fight against corruption.
Waithaka was sentenced alongside former County Executive Committee Member for Water, Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources, Grace Wanjiru Gitonga, who received a similar two-year sentence or a Ksh. 1 million fine.
The court found that on April 30, 2014, both Waithaka and Gitonga violated the Public Procurement and Disposal Act of 2006 by unlawfully procuring services from M/s TAHAL Consulting Engineers Limited without a procurement plan for the 2013/2014 financial year.
Additionally, Waithaka was convicted of abuse of office for improperly awarding the company a contract to develop the County Water Master Plan and design the Ol Kalou Town Sewerage System without following procurement procedures.
“Waithaka was sentenced to two years in prison or a Ksh. 500,000 fine for wilfully failing to comply with procurement laws, and another two years or Ksh. 500,000 fine for abuse of office,” stated the ODPP.
Sentences to run concurrently if the fine is unpaid.
The prosecution team, led by Mercy Gateru, Maryanne Mwangi, Alex Akula, and Wesley Nyamache, successfully proved that the former officials deliberately disregarded procurement laws, leading to their conviction.
Waithaka now becomes the third former governor convicted on corruption charges in recent years, following the sentencing of former Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulaal and former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu.