ACC seeks corruption charge against ex-WAMCO head Shifau

Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) requested the Prosecutor General’s Office on Tuesday for former managing director of Waste Management Corporation (WAMCO), Mohamed Shifau to be prosecuted for corruption in awarding an MVR 1 million contract to develop a software. 

In a statement on Tuesday evening, ACC said its investigation found Noni Solutions Pvt. Ltd. was awarded a contract to procure a customer relationship management system (Veshifaara software) that WAMCO needed as an emergency work, without an open tender. 

ACC found that the owner of Noni Solutions and Shifau – who had been serving as WAMCO’s managing director at the time – shared a close personal relationship, and that all communications related to the award of the contract was carried out under his supervision. 

“Though quotations for WAMCO’s emergency requests are obtained by the Procurement Department upon submission of request, we found Noni Solutions was contracted to develop the Veshifaara software in violation of this policy, as well as in violation of WAMCO’s Procurement Policy,” reads the statement. 

ACC also found that though the contract was awarded as an emergency work, the “emergency situation” wasn’t clearly explained as required under Article 8 of WAMCO’s Procurement Policy. 

“And the requests weren’t submitted to the Logistics and Maintenance Department or the company’s Board,” said ACC. 

ACC found the contract between WAMCO and Noni Solutions was signed by Shifau, and that multiple money transfers were made from Noni Solutions’ owner’s bank account to Shifau’s bank account after the contract was signed. 

ACC said they found Shifau misused his official authority to confer an undue advantage to the owner of Noni Solutions, and have asked the Prosecutor General’s Office to charge him with misuse of official authority to under Section 513 of the Penal Code.