Treasury PS faces possible jail over Sh140m IFMIS payment dispute

A High Court ruling has placed Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo on the spot, with the court finding him in contempt over failure to comply with an order requiring the National Treasury to pay more than Sh140 million to an IT firm linked to a government contract awarded years ago.

The judge ruled last week that PS Kiptoo had ignored a court directive issued on December 31, 2025, which required payment to Kobby Technologies Ltd, describing the conduct as “brazen defiance”. The court noted that the order was properly served but not acted upon.

PS Kiptoo has now been ordered to appear before the court on May 6 for mitigation, where sentencing and further directions on punishment will be made.

At the heart of the dispute is a consortium contract signed in February 2021 involving Kingsway Business Systems Limited, Kobby Technologies Limited and Iplenion Eastern Africa Limited.

The firms were engaged to offer onsite support for IFMIS applications, improve the IFMIS e-procurement system, and provide related technical services over a three-year period.

Court records show the deal was valued at Sh647 million, structured as a performance-based agreement with annual renewals tied to the delivery of set milestones.

The National Treasury told the court that the contract was split into two segments — IFMIS application support worth Sh418.2 million and IFMIS e-procurement enhancement services valued at Sh228.8 million.

According to the government position, the arrangement required completion of agreed milestones before payments could be made. It maintained that Year One obligations were fully delivered and settled, while work for Year Two and Year Three was not undertaken, and therefore no payment was due.

In his defence, Dr Kiptoo argued that extension discussions did not materialise into binding terms because the contractor failed to meet the required conditions, leading to the expiry of the agreement without any pending obligations.

He further told the court that the National Treasury is not in a position to pay the disputed amount due to a lack of funds and therefore cannot comply with the garnishee order.

Despite the defence, the court held that the failure to obey its earlier directive amounted to contempt, opening the door for possible jail time or other penalties against the senior Treasury official.