Togo's procurement regulator found a tourism ministry official staged a sham competitive bid for a vehicle purchase; he says his minister ordered it
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Togo's public procurement regulator ARCOP ruled, in a deliberation reported by Journal du Togo on July 27, 2026 (n° 023-2026/ARCOP/CRD), that Yaovi Keke, Director of Administrative and Financial Affairs at the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Arts, interfered in a contract award, produced false minutes of the public markets control commission, and simulated a competitive tender that masked a direct award of a vehicle purchase to the dealer Japan Motors. ARCOP suspended him from public procurement for 10 years. Keke said he acted on direct orders from his minister, Isaac Tchiakpe; ARCOP rejected that defense, saying officials must refuse manifestly illegal orders. ARCOP had asked the minister in writing in March 2026 to clarify his subordinate's claims and he did not respond; it said its disciplinary power does not extend to government members. Tchiakpe has not been sanctioned.
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