A bribery scheme has been uncovered at the National Construction Authority (NCA) Upperhill Head Office in Nairobi.
The scheme, which reportedly involves officers at the head office, is said to be delaying the registration of contractors and extorting large sums of money in exchange for quick approvals.
According to an anonymous source who recently applied to register as an electrical contractor, his application has been pending since November 23rd, 2022.
When he went to the head office to inquire about the delay, he was approached by a police officer at the reception on the 9th floor, who asked for his company name and the category of registration he had applied for.
“He plainly asks for which category you have registered and the company name, followed by the progress of the application,” the source said.
“Thereafter, you are told to fork out Sh30k and the approvals will be out in 24 hours.”
The source went on to say that even lower categories, such as NCA 8, are being priced at Sh15,000 for the license to be issued, which is triple what is legally charged to register for the same.
The anonymous source who reported the issue is calling for the exposure of these corrupt officers and staff of the relevant department and urges that they should process applications as they were before, devoid of forced delays and extortions.
The revelation of this extortion scheme is deeply concerning and must be addressed immediately by the relevant authorities.
It is unacceptable that officials are using their positions of power to extort money from contractors and delay their registration process.
This not only undermines the integrity of the institution but also undermines the rule of law, citizens’ trust in the government and the ability of the government to provide public goods and services.
This blog will be closely monitoring this disturbing matter and will report on its progress and conclusion.
We urge the relevant authorities to take swift action and conduct a thorough investigation into the matter and bring the perpetrators to book.
We hope that the relevant authorities will not be silenced by the corrupt NCA officials and will take the necessary steps to ensure that the registration process is fair and just for all contractors.
