Kenyan MPs on the spot as details emerge that teams delay reports to cut deals

The National Assembly’s leadership has publicly admitted that parliamentary committees that investigate sensitive matters delay submitting their reports to doctor them.

Monday, top officers of the National Assembly, including Speaker Justin Muturi and the clerk, Justin Bundi, exposed the political conspiracy to kill parliamentary investigations when they revealed that MPs were deliberately delaying reports to shield their cronies or to cut deals.

Among probe reports whose tabling in the House has delayed are three reports by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) following scrutiny of Government spending and another arising from an investigation into the procurement of biometric voter registration kits by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

Allegations of bribery for committees to give favourable reports have rocked Parliament for sometime. In June, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) said it was investigating at least two parliamentary committees over their handling of issues linked to multi-billion shilling public projects. The Transport Committee, which at the time had cleared the controversial Standard Gauge Railway project, and a parliamentary oversight team whose identity was not revealed, were reported to be on EACC’s radar.

In March, Deputy Minority Leader Jakoyo Midiwo claimed in the House that some committees had been turned into rent-seeking avenues.

Monday, while speaking at a meeting with the Kenya Parliamentary Journalists’ Association in Mombasa, the administrators of the august House revealed they will now have to weigh in with strict administrative measures to make sure MPs and their committees deliver reports as soon as they are ready.

Many drafts

“It is a matter of great concern to me that a committee will have a report from the Auditor General for more than a year, call witnesses, principal secretaries, Cabinet secretaries and everybody else, and for one more year, you don’t see them produce a report. It speaks volumes,” said Muturi.

The Clerk and the Director of Committee Services Florence Abonyo said they had a problem with most committees which have been sitting on investigatory reports.

“We have a case where we have reports in draft form, but they have not been adopted because of the politics. If the Speaker can make a ruling on this issue, the committees can then make haste with reports on investigations,” said ms Abonyo.

Some reports are put on ice because of politics or what the officials referred to as “canvassing”. Muturi also censured committees for failing to make findings in the audit of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in their constituencies, even where there was a clear case of misappropriation.

“It is fair, that even as we try to beat our chests about our oversight role, we must at all times remember that charity begins at home. You cannot possibly be shouting at the rooftop about malfeasance here and there...pointing at the speck in your neighbours eye, while ignoring the log in yours,” charged Muturi.

Improve performance

He asked: “The Auditor General also audits something which is very close to the hearts of parliamentarians, CDF. We have seen reports that indicate that the affairs under CDF have not been rosy. What has Parliament through PAC done, to improve the performance of CDF?

The journalists raised queries with the House leadership after the inordinate delay of the report that investigated the procurement of biometric voter registration kits. Abonyo said the committee had resolved to make study visits to France, Canada, India and South Africa, and the last trip to India was done in October.

“They concluded the report in November, but it has not been adopted. Unless a report has been adopted by the majority of MPs in the committee, that is 15 MPs, then there’s nothing we can do. Our hands are tied,” the Director of Committee Services responded.

Top of the list is PAC, which looks at the spending in Government ministries and other State organs. The parliamentary officials said the committee had promised to table three reports on the findings of the Auditor General for the spending in the Financial Years 2010/2011, 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 but had failed.