Africa-Press – Kenya. Accounting officers in all state departments are going to be held responsible for any misuse or loss of funds, Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei has warned.
Koskei said there is no excuse for public resources to get lost through acts that include negligence when there are “clear” laws governing procurement processes.
“…even the user departments, we are going to hold them accountable for any misstep that somebody takes intentionally in order to get a way of misdirecting government funds other uses other than those planned for,” Koskei said.
He was speaking during a working tour of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) offices in Nairobi.
Koskei reminded public officers that the law must strictly be followed asking the relevant agencies to relook at their roles and stick to procurement plans
He commended the authority for its role in strengthening capacity building among the procurement personnel in the counties and the government departments.
This, he stated, has helped in forestalling situations where irregularities in procurement processes are a result of unqualified personnel.
“PPRA is expected to fight corruption in public procurement and asset disposal by enforcing public procurement guiding principles and national values and principles,” he said.
Director general Patrick Wanjuki and chairman Andrew Musangi were among the senior officials present.
As part of the administrative intervention measures to enhance the capacities and competencies of procurement officers, Koskei told the regulator to ensure proper publication and sharing of information on debarred suppliers among government agencies.
He stated that this will ensure that procuring entities do not process bids submitted by such bidders and payments through the IFMIS system to debarred suppliers are detected and rejected.
Koskei also urged the regulator to incorporate the code of ethics for business suppliers doing business with the government as well as tax and other regulatory compliances and to develop simplified guidelines on complex procurement processes.
Musangi said they have developed and put in place necessary checks to avoid scenarios where “mischief” might occur especially in the procurement of commonly consumed items.
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