- Justice John Mativo ordered the fresh bid which by extension revoked one that the ministry had entered into with another firm it did not disclose.
- The ministry’s defence was that it had not been served with the injunction stopping the tendering process by the time it awarded the tender.
Image: DPPS
The government has invited fresh bids for the Sh12.5 billion police car leasing tender following orders by the High Court.
In what may lock out many local firms, the Interior ministry has set a condition that the 1,290 vehicles must be assembled locally. They are for the police, national government administrators — regional and county commissioners — and the Presidential Delivery Unit.
Interior PS Karanja Kibicho readvertised the call for bids yesterday after a protracted court battle that pitted the ministry against car dealer CMC Motors.
Justice John Mativo ordered the fresh bid, which, by extension, revoked one that the ministry had with another firm it did not disclose.
CMC moved to the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board after the ministry cancelled tenders floated in May and September last year. In cancelling the first two invitations for bids, the Interior ministry cited high prices by the bidders. It reasoned that the tender would have seen taxpayers pay Sh1 billion more had the bid proceeded.
During the firm's appeal against the PPARB decision at the High Court, the ministry floated a restricted tender on October 1 from which it settled on the undisclosed firm.
But Mativo faulted the CS Fred Matiang'i-led ministry on the move, citing grounds the October ad was placed before the expiry of 14 days of the PPARB verdict.
The ministry’s defence was that it had not been served with the injunction stopping the tendering process by the time it awarded the tender.
The fresh tender — set to close on February 12 — now has seven lots, the first being for 500 heavy-duty single cabin diesel-powered pick-ups with rear superstructure and canvas. The second lot comprises 50 medium-duty petrol-powered passenger vehicles of between 1,500-2,000cc with 4x4 drive functionality.
The ministry is also bidding for 118 locally assembled light-duty petrol-powered passenger vehicles of between 1,500 - 2,000cc engine capacity.
The fourth lot comprises of 180 diesel-powered long-wheelbase double-cabin with 4x4 drive functionality and fitted with a superstructure and canvas. Also sought are 245 diesel-powered low wheelbase double-cabin pick up with 4x4 drive and of between 1,900 to 3,000cc engine capacity.
The sixth batch comprises of 120 locally assembled diesel-powered single cabin pickups with superstructure and canvas. Another batch consists of 77 petrol-powered heavy-duty passenger vehicle with 4x4 drive functionality and of between 2,001 – 3,000cc capacity.
Last July, the government issued a directive that all ministries, state departments and agencies give preference to locally assembled vehicles in line with President Uhuru Kenyatta's Big Four manufacturing pillar.
The other condition for the leasing tender is that a bidder must have at least five main branches, owned or contracted, which will service the vehicles. They are required to be spread in at least Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru or Meru — all stocked with spares and components.
Bidders are required to have branches that would serve Lower Eastern: Mwingi, Kitui and Makueni; Lower Western: Kisii, Migori and Homa Bay; the Central region: Nyeri, Embu, Nanyuki and Isiolo; and the Tsavo region: Voi, Taveta, Mtito Andei and Kibwezi.
A bidder should also have or contract service centres in Upper Northeastern: Wajir, Mandera and El Wak; Upper North: Marsabit, North Horr, Moyale, Laisamis and Banya; Upper Coast: Hola, Garsen, Lamu and Kiunga areas; Lower Rift: Maralal and Baragoi; Upper Rift: Lodwar, Lokichogio and Lokichor; and Lower Northeastern covering Garissa, Liboi and Modogashe.
The centres should have the capacity for normal vehicle service, diagnosis, and repairs, as well as stock basic spare parts. A bidder is required to provide a list of the centres and proof of the ability to offer the services.
“They should indicate their workshop size, infrastructure, equipment, and personnel,” the tender document reads.
But players in the industry, however, have cried foul that the restriction that the vehicles have to be assembled locally is prohibitive. An official at one of the potential bidders told the Star in confidence (for fear of reprisal) that the call would be a tall order.
The car seller said it would not make economic sense for one to invest in an assembly line without a clear sustainability strategy. “You can’t just assemble a few vehicles for government and close [up] shop. What if you invest in the line and then lose the tender?”
He argued that an assembly plant is capital and labour intensive “and therefore if you don’t have numbers (sales) to sustain operations, the situation remains dicey.”
“Apart from trucks, you need to sell a lot of the other vehicles to break even,” the official said.
Apparently, only four major car manufacturers in the country have an assembly line. Toyota assembles Landcruisers, mostly used by the police, while Volkswagen’s plant can only churn out its Caddy, Tiguan and Polo brands.
General Motors, known for its Isuzu and Chevrolet, mainly deals in trucks. Other players such as Nissan and DT Dobie have no assembly lines, while French automaker Renault builds its K-Range heavy-duty trucks in Thika.
CMC works through Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers Limited, which runs an assembly line in Thika.