Just hours after the United States of America Federal Court delivered a ruling indicting the Adani Group directors to accusations of corruption, Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi has defended the government over the backlash it is facing regarding contractual agreements that it had set its sights on.
Appearing before the Senate Committee on Finance on Thursday, November 21, Wandayi stated that the government conducted due diligence on the Adani Group before engaging the conglomerate.
According to the CS, the government through the Treasury and the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company conducted a two-phased exercise on the suitability of the firm in regard to legal issues.
”On the matter of Adani’s indictment, under section 41 of the Private Public Partnership(PPP) Act, we have an elaborate mechanism for undertaking due diligence. The PPP Directorate domiciled under the Treasury in coordination with KETRACO conducted a due diligence exercise on Adani Energy Solution in two phases,’’ Wandayi stated.
Wandayi told the committee led by Narok Senator Ledama Ole Kina that the two-phased process involved a review of all documents on the financial and legal aspects of the company.
The CS further detailed that after the Treasury reviewed all the documents, it was satisfied that the Adani Group had met all its tax obligations in their country of origin, India.
He also told the committee that President William Ruto’s administration had no doubts as a government on the ability of the company to handle Kenya’s infrastructural engagements.
”Phase one involved a documentary review of all soft copies of the documents submitted by the Adani Group to demonstrate their technical, legal, financial, and logistical capacity to undertake similar projects,’’ he added
“The proponent also provided legal documents demonstrating their compliance to all legal requirements, compliance to laws and regulations including tax compliance in their country of origin.”
These happened even as the Adani Group, in a harsh-toned statement, dismissed the allegations by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) that its directors were corrupt.
”The allegations made by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of Adani Green are baseless and denied,’’ Adani Group said in a statement.
Gautam Adani, the group CEO, along with seven other executives in the multibillion-dollar company, were indicted by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in New York for bribing Indian government officials.
According to the indictment, the Adani Group has for years bribed officials to lie to US investors and acquire green energy supply contracts for the group’s Adani Green subsidiary.
According to a report by CNN, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller stated that the bribes were to facilitate the officials lying to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars and to obstruct justice.
”This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 (approximately Ksh32 billion) million in bribes to Indian government officials. These offences were allegedly committed by senior executives and directors to obtain and finance massive state energy supply contracts through corruption and fraud at the expense of US investors,” she stated.
Source: kENYANS.CO.KE