MID permanent secretary on radar on $3m shipping grant for Ghost Company

 

REVELATIONS have surfaced that the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Infrastructure Development, Henry Murray Aife, has direct links to Amwata Shipping and Boat Building Company, a ghost company which has milked $2.5million on shipping grant last year.

A well-placed source within the Ministry of Finance and Treasury revealed that the ghost company has re-applied for $3 million this year and has already been approved as a recipient.

However, sources familiar with the matter said Amwata Shipping and Boat Building Company has never existed, nor operating any business on that scale.

The source alleged that those people in the company’s registration certificate of Amwata Shipping Company are close family members of the MID Permanent Secretary.

As cited, they are Lina Rupen, Alfred Wasege, Patrick Gariuruna, Andrew Higa, Silas Wagatora and Eddie Aife, the brother of the permanent secretary.

“One would argue that it’s the board or committee’s decision to approve applications for this year’s grant, but the permanent secretary is the key figure on this,” the source claimed.

Amwata Shipping Company registered the business on April 25, 2016, just only few months before it was given the $2.5 million in June last year.

The source calls for the sacking of the permanent secretary for his involvement.

It is not clear as to how many companies have been approved this year, but the Director of MID, Harry Rini has told the media that recipients (of the) 2017 Transportation grants have been approved.

Amwata Shipping Company is one of the eight ghost companies that the Government approved for funding under the shipping grant last year.

There are total of 25 recipients last year.

Attempts to get comments from the PS for MID turned futile before the paper went to print last night, however the paper is following up on the issue.