A Mombasa court has rejected an application to stay the prosecution of a senior Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) official and a trader accused of corruption in a tender process at the port.

Chief Magistrate Alex Ithuku declined the request by Mark Oriema Gor, Simon Otieno Alloo and Alootek Systems Limited to block their trial. Instead, the magistrate ruled that the matter constituted a criminal case separate from any related civil proceedings.

The accused, through their lawyer, had argued that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) was not aware of a connected civil suit when charges were instituted. They claimed this knowledge would have influenced a different decision on the prosecution.

Principal Prosecution Counsel Alex Ndiema, representing the ODPP, opposed the application, stating that the existence of civil proceedings does not bar the Director of Public Prosecutions from pursuing criminal charges.

In his ruling, Chief Magistrate Ithuku held that the charges were properly before the court, adding that the accused had not presented compelling reasons or material facts to warrant halting the prosecution. The magistrate directed the accused to take a plea.

Both Gor and Alloo pleaded not guilty to the corruption-related counts.

Gor, a mechanical superintendent at KPA and member of the tender opening and evaluation committees, faces one count of conflict-of-interest contrary to Section 42(3) as read with Section 48 of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, 2003.

The charge states that between March 13 and 14, 2018, in Mombasa County, Gor failed to declare his private interest in tender number KPA/097/2017-2018/CCE for the supply and maintenance of two Copco compressors.

He is further accused of sharing the tender price with Simon Otieno Alloo, a director of Alootek Systems Limited, while acquainted with him.

Alloo and Alootek Systems Limited face one count of fraudulent practice in procurement proceedings contrary to Sections 66 and 72 as read with Sections 176 and 177 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015.

The prosecution avers that between March 13 and 23, 2018, in Mombasa County, Alloo fraudulently influenced the direct procurement process for the award of the tender. He is accused of falsely representing to KPA that he was the sole distributor of Atlas Copco equipment in Kenya and thus qualified for the award.

The court released the two accused persons on a cash bail of Ksh100, 000 each. Magistrate Ithuku directed the prosecution to provide witness statements to the defence ahead of the pre-trial conference scheduled for March 18, 2026.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / by Sitati Reagan