CMC di Ravenna’s Assets Frozen

The high court in Kenya has frozen the assets of CMC di Ravenna, the Italian firm under investigation for its contract to construct the Arror and Kimwarer dams. The case is being probed by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), which is examining allegations that officials were bribed in order to secure the release of Sh21 billion in funds from the Treasury.

CMC di Ravenna is now unable to sell or transfer equipment and 98 motor vehicles that it purchased using a loans advance that it has since defaulted on. It has already filed for bankruptcy in Italy and the company has abandoned work on Itare Dam in Nakuru County, while construction has not started for the Sh61 billion Arror and Kimwarer dams planned for Elgeyo-Marakwet County.

The DCI has summoned a great many political and business representatives in connection with the matter. However, it is not yet clear which are suspects or which have simply been called to aid the DCI in its investigations. In the meantime concerns have been raised that the DCI must be careful not to take a broad brush approach to the matter that could damage the vast number of local firms connected to the project in the absence of any indication of their complicity.