April 2018 was the grand month, when prime suspects in the Arror and Kimwarer Dams Scandal closed the deal, that would see over Ksh21 billion taxpayers money lost.
Among those who featured prominently and also fired were the then Treasure Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich and his PS Kamau Thuge, said to have been the masterminds.
Bihind them, there were over 25 other suspects, that were termed as ‘others’ by the media, and portrayed to be less harmful.
One of the ‘others’ was one Mr Jackson Njau Kinyanjui, currently listed as the acting Director General, Public Management Office and Director of External Resources Department (currently Resource Mobilization Department) in the National Treasury.
In the Arror, Kimwarer dam projects, he was among the suspects arrested and arraigned because Treasury made payments before acquiring the project site for Arror, and before a feasibility study was done for the Kimwarer dam.
The payments were authorised by Mr Kinyanjui and Mr Kennedy Nyakundi, chief economist. They authorised the lenders’ agent, Intesa Sanpaolo, to credit part of the proceeds (66.6 million Euros (Ksh7.6 billio)) to the account of CMC di Ravenna-Itinera JV.
Read: Murkomen Is Planning My Impeachment To Silence Me Over Arror-Kimwarer Scandal – Governor Alex Tolgos
In June 2018, Kinyanjui’s replacement was picked but he refused to vacate office, in a bid to hide the scandal where he was benefiting heavily.
It was reported that the replacement, Dr Haron Sirima, was forced to operate from his private office on Mama Ngina Street as he awaited Rotich and Thugge to usher him into the new role. By the time of going to press Kahawa Tungu could not independently confirm how the saga ended, but Kinyanjui is still listed as the office bearer in an acting capacity.
The suspected proceed of graft seem to have been inherited by her daughter, Shay Njau Mugi, who is eating life with a big spoon going by photos on her social media accounts.
Ms Mugi is a civil servant working with geothermal development cooperation. Her husband, Eric Mugi, with whom they are enjoying life, works at Old Mutual.
Going by their salaries, it would be difficult to imagine that the young couple has accumulated wealth so soon, including apartments such as the Njasu, Red Oak, Golden Oak and Jokari.
Kinyanjui’s wife, Mrs Susan Njau, is now a very senior youth fund official at the Ministry of Education. She has climbed up the ladder so fast, from a teacher 15 years ago to a senior ministry official, thanks to her husband’s influential position at the government.
Susan Njau: Director of Youth Affairs-ministry of Public service and Gender Affairs.The internship program is different from volunteer program.@rochieng @mo_psyga @InfinixKenya @BLAZEKenya @DiscoverJKUAT #YouthDialogueKE pic.twitter.com/sKRuJiIdS5
— National Youth Council (@NYC_YouthVoice) April 13, 2018
In 2017, I&M Bank was entangled in a tax row with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), which was demanding Ksh238 million in VAT, corporate and withholding tax.
I&M had launched a complaint at the High Court, where justice George Odunga ordered I&M to take its case against the KRA to the Tax Appeals Tribunal for determination.
Read: Former KVDA Boss David Kimosop Arrested At JKIA Over Arror-Kimwarer Saga
However, the case took a new twist and the case died down after the intervention of Mr Kinyanjui. As a reward, Ms Bilha Wanjiru Mwangi, a lawyer married to his first born son was appointed as the company secretary.
Recently, Kahawa Tungu learns that Mr Kinyanjui bought out neighbours in his current residence where he put a wall/electric fence around his whole shamba, put biogas, bought expensive cows at Ksh200,000 each, dug a bore hole and expanded his whole house.
Following the Arror and Kimwarer Dams scandal where he is a suspect, his property is among the properties being targeted by anti-graft agencies. In the swoop, the government targets prime parcels of land and properties in Karen, Runda and Gigiri if it succeeds in nailing the suspects.
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