5 Suspects in Ksh100K Bungoma Wheelbarrows Scheme Acquitted

Five former Bungoma county officials who had been convicted over the fraudulent purchase of wheelbarrows at an inflated price were on Thursday, October 1, freed.A Kakamega High Court acquitted the suspected who had been found guilty for the purchase that saw the county procure nine wheelbarrows at a cost of Ksh 109,320 each in 2015.Through their lawyer, the officials who were members of the county tendering committee, want to be reinstated at their work stations decrying years of ridicule. Some of the Bungoma wheelbarrows that were purchased at a cost of Ksh109,000 each in 2015.Twitter “Over the four years, we have painfully endured the consequences of the allegations. Our careers were put in jeopardy, integrity put in question and our livelihoods and families were adversely impacted,” their lawyer read out a statement on behalf of the officials.The officials also want to receive their dues since the day they were suspended from their positions.In 2018, the suspects were found guilty on four accounts of misappropriation of funds.The verdict read out by Senior Principal Magistrate Thomas Muraguri on behalf of Senior Magistrate Bildard Ochieng’ saw the officials sentenced to one-and-half years in jail or pay a fine of Ksh300,000 each.Court documents showed that the 10 non-carcinogenic wheelbarrows were for use in a slaughterhouse in the county. They were supplied by Jagla Enterprises at a cost of Sh109,320 each, causing public uproar.Former Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka who is now Senate Speaker, defended the purchase stating that they were special, stainless equipment that reduced the risk of cancer since they were to be used in the food industry.In an interview in 2019, he would later explain that he was shocked when he saw the figure and initiated an audit.”Why would a wheelbarrow cost Ksh109,000? I wanted an explanation, and they came and explained to me that it was not an ordinary wheelbarrow. It was a regular food trolley. It is just the name that was given because of the material that was used,” he stated.He noted that the incident was taken out of proportion due to politics. “Media of course set me up because whoever interviewed me edited some parts out and just left the parts that they wanted to use,” he alleged. Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka at a public function in Nairobi in 2018File