Tale of EACC chairman's seat jinxed from the beginning

Current EACC Chairman Phillip Kinisu. (Photo: Boniface Okendo/Standard)

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) chairman’s position has been a revolving door since its inception in 1997.

EACC’s new boss Phillip Kinisu might count himself lucky if he leaves office without ‘force’ after all his predecessors unceremoniously placed a full stop to their tenure for being unwanted. The history of Kenya’s urge to fight graft dates back to 1956. This noisy history began with the Prevention of Corruption Act. This law would guide the country in the graft war for 41 years, when it was amended to form the Kenya Anti-Corruption Authority (Kaca).

Kaca was created in 1997 and former Kilome MP Harun Mwau was appointed director in December of the same year. However, his luck at the helm was short lived as he was removed after being in office for only six months.

Mr Mwau’s dismissal came following a public row with former Finance Minister Simeon Nyachae, after he (Mwau) filed charges against four high-ranking Treasury officials. He ended being kicked out in may 1998 and his position was taken over by retired judge Aaron Ringera in March 1999. He promised to give corruption a kick in the belly but the hard-talking judge was forced out before that could happen.

Rendered useless

On December 22, 2000, the court rendered him useless, with a ruling that Kaca undermined the constitutional powers of the Attorney General and the Commissioner of Police.

Fast forward to September 2010. PLO Lumumba took office after former President Mwai Kibaki signed the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Bill into law creating the EACC.

On August 24, 2011, the outspoken lawyer would have to leave after he fell out with MPs, who pushed for a vote of no confidence. At that time, PLO was battling his own corruption allegations put forward by MP Cecily Mbarire over an alleged bribe the anti-graft chief purportedly received in form of a harambee donation.

After PLO, Mumo Matemu came in.  He promised to take corruption to its deathbed. Needless to say, he did not see the fruition of his dream as he left on account of “his failure in his fight against corruption”. Matemu was appointed in May 2012 and left office in May 2015.