Five ex-officials face civil suit over irregular CHAN tender payments

EACC headquarters at the Integrity Centre, Nairobi. (Photo: EACC)

By Lucy Mumbi
Sunday, August 17, 2025

The suit focuses on payments made to Gregori International in 2017 for upgrading sports facilities in preparation for the CHAN tournament, which was later relocated to Morocco after Kenya failed to meet Confederation of African Football requirements.

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has moved to court seeking to recover Sh220.4 million from five former officials and a French contractor over alleged procurement irregularities in the preparations for Kenya’s failed bid to host the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN).

The Commission argues that the money was disbursed through a flawed direct procurement process that ignored professional advice and bypassed key regulatory requirements.

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Former Sports Principal Secretary Peter Kaberia and former Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa are among those named in the civil suit, alongside Sports Kenya engineer and liaison officer John Ruga, former Ministry of Sports Director of Administration Haron Komen, Isaac Okoth, and French contractor Gregori International. The action follows the withdrawal of a related criminal case by the State.

The suit focuses on payments made to Gregori International in 2017 for upgrading sports facilities in preparation for the CHAN tournament, which was later relocated to Morocco after Kenya failed to meet Confederation of African Football requirements.

The amount in dispute formed part of a Sh1.2 billion (€8,117,869) contract signed on September 14, 2017, covering design, mobilisation, grass removal, irrigation, levelling, soil preparation, fertilisation, installation of Bermuda and Pasalum grass, and provision of equipment across five stadiums and 10 training centres.

EACC claims the Ministry of Sports violated procurement laws by bypassing the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and failing to notify the regulator within the mandatory 14 days. The commission further highlighted the absence of proper documentation and oversight.

“There were no bills of quantities, blank tender document, detailed specifications, designs and drawings for the tender developed by the user department. The said bidder instead provided their own specification, designs and drawings. No tender documents were prepared, no bid bond provided, no ad-hoc evaluation or negotiation committee was appointed, and no professional opinion was rendered on the procurement process,” the EACC said.

The commission also argued that inspections were not conducted on the work done by the contractor, meaning value for money was not guaranteed.

“Inspection was not done for the alleged work carried out by the contractor, hence value for money not guaranteed,” read the court papers.

Pending the court’s determination, the High Court has temporarily barred the Sports Department from paying Gregori International or continuing with the contract.

EACC alleges that the officials and the contractor violated the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, and the Public Finance Management Act. The commission further claims that Gregori International had no legal authority to operate in Kenya.

“The sixth defendant (Gregori International) was neither registered as a contractor with no accreditation by the National Construction Authority (NCA) and was thus not authorised to carry on the business of a contractor in Kenya,” the EACC said, adding that the payments made were unsupported by verifiable documents.

The defendants are now expected to file their responses to the commission’s suit, which seeks to recover the Sh220.4 million irregularly disbursed during the CHAN preparations.