Kenya's Corruption: Too much time spent on talk, now walk the talk

The dust is beginning to settle on President Uhuru Kenyatta's much-acclaimed State of the Nation address last week. The overriding message to the corrupt cartels operating in high offices was that their time is up.

It is not difficult to know why. The price the country has had to pay for corruption is huge and sooner or later something had to be done.

The World Bank estimates that in 2013/2014, Kenya lost nearly Sh370 billion to corruption. Put it this way, the economy lost 250,000 jobs due to corruption. We would have lost the same or probably more by the end of the year.

This amount of money is enough to either run the 47 counties for one year, equip hospitals, build schools or put a tarmac coat on hundreds of kilometres of roads, yet it has largely  benefited a handful of individuals as larger populations of Kenyans slip further into penury.

This newspaper has continuously maintained that the buck stops with Mr Kenyatta. Last week, he took the first major step to tackle the vice, and already there are schemes to thwart these efforts by, especially, Members of Parliament and governors who have been adversely mentioned.

It is becoming apparent that this is a contest between those eager to move the country forward and those keen on obstructing that progress. The later must not be allowed to win.

These ones would want to argue that the President did not follow procedure. That is neither here nor there. Parliament and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission recently descended into a farce, tearing each other apart over claims of impropriety in their ranks. The President could not just sit back and watch.

The Cabinet Secretaries who offered to step aside as directed should be applauded. They are not guilty of any impropriety until proven guilty in a court of law.

Governors on the other hand are trying to hide behind the fact that the two levels of Government are distinct. The issue at hand is not who has authority over who, but slaying the monster of corruption.

Some governors have pegged their stepping aside on Deputy President William Ruto resigning because of the crimes against humanity case he faces at the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

Mr Kenyatta faced a similar case, but which was terminated last year for lack of evidence. Perhaps this is the precedent that the MPs and governors are pointing out.

Despite having misgivings about an ICC suspect being Deputy President, those keen to disobey the President's call were at the forefront campaigning for the Jubilee duo in full knowledge of the cases facing them.

 

We don't have the luxury of pointing fingers. And two wrongs never made a right.

Those adversely mentioned must step aside to facilitate investigations. If cleared of wrongdoing, they can resume their duties.

All must rally behind the President in the fight against corruption. We must stop being a country of perpetual hecklers and incurable cynics even when an act is well-meaning.

Extreme circumstances call for extreme measures. With the country bleeding from corruption, it had to take one moment of extreme bravery and courage to right things. Mr Kenyatta took the bold step.

There are inherent risks and obstacles in the war on corruption. The public should ignore politicians who are wont to cry foul that their tribe is under attack. After all, if they abused their authority, they didn't do it in the name of their tribe.

Most importantly, fair investigations and trials must be observed to avoid cases where the innocent could be punished while the guilty walk away free.

Fair justice must ring above the din precipitated by the release of the list. And the only way to do that is to walk the talk. All must.