Alex Mbugua Former Kenya Airways and former Kenya Airways chief executive Mbuvi Ngunze. [Photo/business daily]Former Kenya Airways finance director Alex Mbugua has written a protest letter to the airline’s chairman, Michael Joseph claiming to have details of the series of scandals that lead to the failure of the company.In a letter dated August 28, 2017, Mr Mbugua accuses former Kenya Airways chief executive Mbuvi Ngunze of corruption and backstabbing.
In the letter he also ropes in former chairman Dennis Awori in the decision to fire him from the top job.He says heavy discounting of ticket prices with the backing of top executives alongside other fare abuses were to blame for KQ’s heavy revenue losses estimated at Sh50 billion.The former finance chief is the one who initiated the forensic audit that Mr Ngunze and Mr. Awori are bent on using prosecute Mr Mbugua.Mr Mbugua wrote in the letter “I believe that there are other parties at large who would want me locked up for good to ensure that the huge revenue losses are buried with me forever".He pleads with Mr Joseph to intervene, even as he promises to sue the airline if the information supplied by the company is used against him in court.The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) and the Banking Fraud Investigations Unit (BFIU) have gone after Mr Mbugua whose court case, alleging wrongful dismissal, is set to be determined on October 5.Mr Mbugua says he is being positioned as the fall guy despite not featuring in a forensic audit report by Deloitte which recommended further investigations of four managers.Allegedly Mr Ngunze signed for a $7 million bank guarantee with collapsed Dubai Bank without board approval, and with a fake signature of the former finance chief. Part of the letter reads, “Deloitte stated in their report that they had subjected my signature and that of former CEO Mbuvi Ngunze on the Dubai Bank opening letter and a bank guarantee letter of $7 million to handwriting experts”Mr Ngunze.“On both instances, my signature was found to be forged, but that of Mbuvi was found to be genuine.”Through his personal assistant, he approved Ms Kiboi’s day-time stay at Nairobi’s Ole Sereni Hotel on July 18, 2014 at a cost Sh14,790 and which was charged to his expense account.Mr Mbugua says that about a year after he was appointed CEO, Mr Ngunze was informed by a “whistleblower” of a suspicious forex transfer of five million rand from South Africa to Citibank’s Nairobi branch.Mr Ngunze also ordered an internal audit to be conducted at the treasury department without Mr Mbugua’s knowledge, a move the former finance director says was an unsuccessful calculation to incriminate him.Mr Ngunze and Mr Awori would, however, eventually hound him out of office. The duo demanded his immediate resignation in Mr Mbuvi’s office on January 11, 2016 but he refused to do so and was fired eight days later.