Nairobi Gubernatorial front runner the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) president Richard Ngatia has distanced himself from the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (KEMSA) scandal that rocked the country over the supply of Covid-19 Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs).
According to Ngatia, Kemsa gave contracts to international companies who are the Original manufacturers and not local companies and that the local firms were only sub-contracted by the international companies due to their knowledge of the Kenyan geography. He disclosed that his company Megascope Healthcare Limited was cub contracted by Chinese firm Mindray Global.
Speaking during a morning breakfast radio show- The Situation Room- on the popular radio station Spice FM, Ngatia said that his company Megascope Healthcare never signed any contracts with the government and it has never received any money directly from the ministry of health for the supply of PPEs in relation to the contract it worked on with Mindray Global.
“We had a contract with Mindray Global as a sub contractor and we implemented the project by making sure we understand all location and the counties. We know the geography of Kenya and so the biomedical engineers are personnel from Megascope with the support from the factory,” Ngatia said.
“We relate with Mindray on a daily basis and they have their representatives here in Kenya for good communication,” he added.
The business mogul said that people should separate Megascope healthcare from Richard Ngatia noting that it is the firm that did business not his personality.
Ngatia blamed his political opponents for the smear campaign that was been waged against his company.
“When Covid came, nobody had an idea of how to handle it and PPEs were only available in China who was reluctant to sell to African nations. They prioritised America and Europe. We managed to procure the equipment but this has now been politicised yet we appeared before parliament and was put to rest. It only surfacing again because of my political interests,” Ngatia said.
