The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has sent home the Commissioner, Customs and Border Control Department weeks after he moved to court to stop the DCI from preferring charges against him.
The Daily Nation was first to report that Kelvin Safari was fired from his post as the head of customs following allegations of abuse of office fronted by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.
Safari's woes with KRA started after he gave a clean bill of health to the Mitchell Cotts Peripheral Storage Facility (PSF) and the Nairobi Inland Cargo Terminal peripheral Storage, which allegedly led to a loss of revenue for KRA.
He, however, rubbished the loss of revenue allegations and insisted that the decision to approve the storage facility was procedural and had not affected KRA's revenue in any way.
He further informed that the decision to open the facility had helped KRA to solve a previously predominant challenge amongst the small scale traders in Nyamakima, Gikomba, and Kamukunji in terms of accessibility of their wares.
On March 7, 2020, Safari wrote to the DPP to ask him to stop the prosecution that had been proposed by the DCI.
According to a report by Citizen TV, Safari was to be charged alongside besieged Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) director Daniel Manduku who is also battling accusations of graft and abuse of office.
“That it is now strange and shocking to learn that I am under the imminent threat of facing an allegation of procedural gazettement of the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) Peripheral Storage Facilities (PSF).
“The thought that I presently face an imminent threat to my employment and reputation yet I have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the protection and promotion of public interest is at least unfortunate,” his letter to the DPP reads in part.
According to the letter, after a recommendation from the offices of Customs and Border Control Department (C&BC), KRA visited and inspected three facilities and gave a clean bill of health to the two storage facilities.
In early March 2020, Safari was arraigned alongside Manduku but did not take a plea since the DPP recalled the case file for further review.
Manduku had hit headlines after the DCI began a probe into what detectives believed was a Ksh2.7 billion tender scandal at the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).
