The powerful boss lady behind KEMSA’s woes Mrs Terry Ramadhani has left tongues wagging after details emerged on her fraudulent payments and hiring against advice from her procurement, legal and finance officers.
A source from the disgruntled board member who did not participate in her hiring described her activities as outrageous. The unhappy board member informed us that in one of the daring money heists, Terry who claims to have purportedly floored many contestants to become the CEO of KEMSA is accused of writing a memo authorising the Acting Finance Manager Mr James Macharia who is at her beck and call to make the fraudulent payments to suppliers ignoring advice from the technical officers who based their advice on an advisory opinion given by the Solicitor General, which was further rubbished by Terry.
So how did Terry join KEMSA?
According to the Public Service Commission, Terry is cited as developing specifications to suit her qualifications and sat in all the board meetings undertaking the recruitment process. These meetings included; Initial meeting to kick-start the recruitment process of the CEO where she sat as the chairperson of the Human Resource Committee, attended all committee meetings in which her recruitment was being discussed, where the applications for the position of the CEO were being reviewed including her own application, the criteria to be used during the interview etc.
She attended these meetings even after she had resigned from the KEMSA board to pave way for her recruitment which is a clear conflict of interest and illegality on her part and that of the KEMSA board for entertaining such an act.
Of interest is how the board members were interviewing their own colleague who had just resigned barely a month before and had the audacity to stage a friendly match and purportedly ranked Terry as the best candidate.
It is worth noting that the board that paved way for Terry’s appointment was invalidated by the employment and labour relations Court having been appointed by Mutahi Kagwe without following the requirements of the KEMSA Act. This is contained in a judgment of Justice Maureen Odero delivered on 27th May 2022 shortly after Terry was appointed CEO.
Among those whose appointment was revoked by the court were; Captain Lawrence Wahome, Linton Nyagah, Dr Robert Nyarango and Terry Ramadhani. Mutahi in his usual characteristics of arrogance proceeded to appoint the replacement of Captain Lawrence, Terry and Nyarango with the current holders without following the requirements of the KEMSA Act and the court judgement. That is to say that the current board of KEMSA is not legally or properly constituted.
Despite all glaring irregularities including her participation in the shortlisting process as proved by minutes which she officially signed, the former Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe who was a close ally and hailing from her home village in Mukuruweini, Nyeri county did not hesitate to appoint her to the position.
Terry Ramadhani has found a new and more powerful protector than Mutahi Kagwe, he is none other than Rigathi Gachagua who unknowingly will protect her in the name of mount Kenya as she robs and milks the KEMSA coffers dry to the detriment of Kenyans who rely on the institution for medical supplies.
This is evidenced by her reaction when the new CS Dr Susan Nakumicha visited Kemsa this week. Given her limited background in Supply Chain, some of the areas she highlighted as critical in boosting operations were dismissed by the new CS Susan Nakumicha among them the ERP System (An IT platform for doing business) whose budget is estimated at about Kshs.400 million.
Terry who was supposed to reap big from this tender was infuriated and quickly dashed to meet Rigathi Gachagua for support. According to sources, Rigathi directed that the ERP project should continue sending the CEO into pure bliss.
Her happiness could not be tamed as she went on a drinking spree in one of her local beer dens before heading off for an evening meeting in Naivasha where she was to chair the session. Although the meeting was to start at 4 pm she arrived at 10 pm in a merry mood and in her drunken stupor started bragging to anyone who cared to listen including senior staff present that the deep state is backing her.
In her drunken stupor, Terry who is also fond of smoking shisha said under the protection of Riggy G who she had just met and the Speaker of the National Assembly Hon. Moses Wetangula who she had already visited and promised to give rewards if he protects her, confirmed to all and sundry that come what may she will serve her full term, notwithstanding the court cases which will be dealt with by the state through the Attorney General. Employees better start packing and leave.
She has previously bragged that the board led by Chair Mary Mwadime is already under her control and all she needs to do is organize a few trips like the one going on in Naivasha to increase their allowances.
