Kenya’s one-laptop per child project has continued to be shrouded with controversy, after details showing that the Kshs1.4 billion price inflation was not justified by the ministry of education’s tender committee were revealed.

Investigations by the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board (PPARB) have revealed that the tender committee had decided to include in the final price the cost of services, despite the fact the three bidders Olive Telecommunications, Hewlett Packard (HP) and Haier Electricals Appliances Corporation, had agreed to offer the services for free.

While awarding the tender to Olive the ministry of education indicated that the tender value had been closed at Kshs24.6 billion. Tender documents however show that Olive had given a Kshs23.03 billion offer as its final bid.

While trying to explain the price discrepancy, Arun Khanna, Olive Telecommunications chairman said that the increase in price was due to the charges in transporting the laptops out of Nairobi.

PPARB, however; termed the additional costs as illegal since it was in direct contravention of the tender rules.

According to the tender requirements, value-added services like spare parts and transportation of the laptops countrywide were to be offered at no extra cost to the government.

“They were reminded that value-added services were to be free of charge that is they were to be offered at no extra cost to the procuring entity,” read part of the tender committee’s submissions to PPARB.

Khanna was however quoted last week as saying that the government “offered an extra dollar for each laptop to supply to the districts” therefore leaving the PPARB and the general public confused about the whole matter.

It is for these reasons and the fact that Olive was also not an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) that PPARB disqualified the former, and ordered that the tender process be carried out afresh with HP and Haier Electricals as the only competitive bidders.

Olive has since moved to court and obtained orders blocking the ministry of education from executing PPARB’s directive, until its appeal case is heard in court.

Last week Kenya's High Court issued an order to stop the re-evaluation of the tender award pending a hearing of the case on April 10.