Little known millionaire Transport ministry officer – Weekly Citizen

Duncan Hunda, a little known junior officer at Transport ministry headed by cabinet secretary James Macharia is minting millions through lucrative tenders at the ministry through Lappset and Standard Railway Gauge projects.

Hunda has brought on his side, wheeler dealer journalist Mwaniki Munuhe another Macharia ally who was linked to management troubles at Kenya Ports Authority. By last week, a civil society was planning to file private criminal prosecutions against Hunda and Munuhe on issues relating to extortion after landing on huge banking deposits done secretly on their private accounts both locally and offshore. A Mombasa based civil society is spearheading the private prosecution.

Hunda or DH as he is commonly referred to in the ministry is the head of Railways and Lappset at the state department of Transport. His department according to inside sources at the ministry controls billions in budget. He is CS Macharia’s blue-eyed boy at the ministry. A secretive man in operations but known to date women and cut deals with Chinese contractors in private apartments in Nairobi and Mombasa, Hunda is said to have accumulated a lot of wealth and invested heavily in real estate mostly in Nairobi, Mombasa and his rural home. To avoid being linked to his multi-billion investments, most of the properties are registered in the names of limited companies registered in the names of his family members and proxies.

Munuhe

Hunda dines and wines with a directors of a Chinese company that won the tender to build the first three berths at Lamu port. The $25.5 billion infrastructure project is to connect landlocked South Sudan and Ethiopia to the Indian Ocean port of Lamu by constructing a major highway, a railway and an oil pipeline. The project has become a milch cow of senior Transport ministry cartel that wants to loot due to international funding and the budget.

The Chinese firms compromising Hunda with payments made in dollars is a consortium of companies led by China Communications Construction Company that won a Sh41 billion ($484 million) contract to build the first three berths at Lamu port.

He is also spotted with directors of China Road and Bridge Corporation, China Communications involved in road constructions and number of berths at Mombasa port.

China Communications is involved in mega project to update Kenya’s railways by constructing a standard-gauge 479 kilometres line between Mombasa to Nairobi that is now extended to Naivasha.

The government has been begging foreign governments and private investors to help fund the transport corridor.

Hunda has bought a hotel at North Coast and a Chinese firm Hunan Contractors did major renovations for free but the cost was put at a half a billion.

Hunda’s name together with millionaire journalist Munuhe, another CS Macharia’s spanner boy, feature in the award of Nakuru-Mau Summit road worth Sh160 billion won by a French consortium. According to sources, Hunda dispatched Munuhe to France before the tender was awarded with full blessings of the CS.

Hunda’s name is also prominent in Nairobi-Naivasha SGR compensation that also involves shareholders of Muhatetu Farmers. To make a killing, Hunda and Mwaniki lobbied to have Muhatetu Farmers, whose members are from Mau Mau descendants, sell their 40.66pc shares in the 75,000 acres ranch upon discovery SGR project would traverse the property. By then, Kenya Railways MD was Atanus Maina and chairman was Michael Waweru. Maina was later sacked with Waweru dropped as board chairman.

Muhatetu Farmers directors in the deal sold shares at Sh2.1 billion to a third party that had set eyes on Naivasha dry port project. The cartel saw the farmers being sidelined from a hefty compensation deal from the government that landed in the bank accounts of Newell Holdings owned by Munuhe, Hunda and other unknown silent shareholders.

Newell Holding Limited bought the shares on August 23 2017, with cheques drawn on August 2 2018.

Just like Mwaniki, Hunda runs offshore dollar accounts with huge deposits made by Chinese firms and other construction companies favoured in construction tenders. Sources say, aware the state security organs are investigating sources of their wealth, Munuhe recently closed his Dove Cage restaurant in Nairobi CBD after KRA demanded millions in tax evasion.

Hunda has been receiving millions from Africa Star Railway Operations Company General Manager Liu Jiuping.

Aftristar is constracted to run and mantain the 592km SGR for ten years after which,the the running and management will go back to state.A lady Clare Wairimu,whose firm is CLAW Ventures said to be a sidekick of Hunda has landed mega tenders at the Chinese firm.

Hunda prefers dealing in dollars when transacting.