President Uhuru roasts top officers over holes in corruption war

Director of Transparency International Kenya Samuel Kimeu(left)Director -CID Ndegwa Muhoro (center)Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) CEO Halakhe Waqo ,The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Keriako Tobiko and Artoney General Githu Muigai during anti-corruption and accountability Summit at state house on 18/10/16-BEVERLYNE MUSILI

President Uhuru Kenyatta interrupted a session of the fortnightly State House Summit and berated senior government officials for waging a seemingly half-hearted fight on corruption.

Mr Kenyatta had been watching the proceedings on TV somewhere within State House yesterday morning and apparently, the ping-pong game that played between the officers over who was responsible for poor results in the war on corruption touched a raw nerve in him.

He then strode in,asked for the microphone and quickly accused the officers tasked with investigations and prosecution of throwing weak punches all around.

Mr Kenyatta told a bewildered summit moderator Jeff Koinange that he was the host and was therefore excused for hijacking the proceedings.

And for 19 minutes and 15 seconds, the President lamented about the lackluster performance of the Judiciary, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Attorney General, the Auditor General and the Directorate of Criminal Investigation.

Uhuru defended his administration, stating that he has allocated enough resources and done more than what any other administration in the country’s history had to fight corruption.

“When it comes to graft whose role is it, who is responsible? Corruption is the issue that has frustrated me the most. But I ask, show me any administration since Independence that has taken action like I have done?” he posed.

He expressed his frustration with slow progress in the war on graft.

“What is your problem? If there has been theft, tell us if it is Uhuru who stole. What do you want me to do? A lot of nonsense if I may say the least,” said Uhuru, in a jibe directed at heads of agencies mandated to fight graft.

Uhuru directly blamed Ethics and Anti-Graft Commission (EACC) boss Halakhe Waqo, Attorney General Githu Muigai, Director of Public Prosecution Keriako Tobiko, Auditor General Edward Ouko and the Judiciary for failing to prosecute corrupt individuals.

LIST OF SHAME

While most of his swipes were directed at the Judiciary, perhaps the biggest jibe was reserved for the beleaguered Halakhe Waqo.

Uhuru reprimanded him for making him believe that there was evidence to nail those he had suspended or sacked from his Government last year under the banner of ‘List of Shame’.

“I have done my part at great expense politically,” said an exasperated President.

He hit out at Prof Muigai and Waqo saying they misled him into asking at least 175 senior government officials, including Cabinet Secretaries and Permanent Secretaries, to step aside in a corruption purge early last year.

“I gave two months to the agencies to prosecute the cases... but the next thing I was told was that the pronouncement itself was unconstitutional. Nothing has come out of the cases,” he lamented.

POLITICAL PRICE

The President said his bold move of forcing CSs and others, some who he said were his close friends, out of office had cost him politically since some of them have since been acquitted and are now campaigning against him.

Uhuru said he had done all he could do within the Constitution, then asked: “Do you want me to have a firing squad at Uhuru Park to make people happy?”

Earlier, the audience had been treated to a game of passing the buck by Prof Muigai and Tobiko, Director of Criminal Investigation Ndegwa Muhoro and Justice Kihara Kariuki over who was the weakest link in the fight against corruption.

Taken to task over issues ranging from corruption and theft at the National Youth Service to the Eurobond billions, all the officers could say amounted to: “It was not me.”

Koinange did not make matters any better for the Government mandarins.

“Anne Waiguru, she is not in court, why?” he asked.

Tobiko cited lack of evidence to build the former CS’s case.

“I have not received any file recommending or implicating (former Devolution Cabinet Secretary) Anne Waiguru, I charge on the basis of evidence... actionable evidence,” responded Mr Tobiko.

EVIDENCE NEEDED

“We only take people to court through the DPP,” said EACC CEO Halakhe Waqo.

“You need evidence to present before court, not things that are being said out there, at this point, nothing points at her,” he added.

Other than President Kenyatta, Transparency International Director Samuel Kimeu was more direct.

“Corruption is an organised crime and the cartels are organised better than the State agencies working together.”

Asked what he thought was the weakest link in the war on corruption, the Attorney General pointed fingers at the Judiciary.

The President expressed frustration in the fight against corruption as Kenyans continue to lose billions to cartels, some operating within his administration.

He appeared to suggest that these State offices had allowed corruption cartels to evade the law and operate with impunity without fear the law would catch up with them.

Turning to Justice Kihara Kariuki, Uhuru questioned why court rulings on corruption cases have taken long to be delivered.

“Even if we are writing on long hand, does that mean we take eight years? Sit day and night and produce a judgement. That is what Kenyans are asking for and that is what you need to do,” he said.

RELEASED SUSPECTS

He said it is the Judiciary which keeps on releasing graft suspects on bond every day, resulting in compromised investigations.

Justice Kariuki blamed poor police investigations for the scenario.

“The investigations are appalling in many cases, the counsel to prosecute don’t show up or are ill-prepared, this leads to adjournment and a case that takes a couple of weeks ends up taking ages,” said Justice Kariuki.

The President said he wanted to put the blame where it ought to be.

“I really wanted to put this thing where it belongs. Those charged with the responsibility do your job, don’t engage in a blame game,” he said.

He said he had done all he could within his constitutional powers to fight graft.

“I have taken the actions that we can take within the Constitution, what do you want me to do?” he posed.

FIRING SQUAD

A clearly agitated Uhuru was not mincing words.

He accentuated his comments with frantic gesticulation.

“Do you expect me to set up a firing squad at Uhuru Park so that the people can be happy?” he wondered.

“Who releases suspects on bond?” “What has that got to do with me?” he asked.

Turning on the Judiciary, which he said had done little to dispense justice to the suspects of corruption, he wondered: “I don’t even have power to sack you (judges).”

“Mnataka nifanye nini jameni.Mimi silindi ufisadi, ni nyinyi mmeshindwa na kazi,” he thundered. (What do you want me to do. I don’t protect the corrupt. It is you who have slept on the job)

He dismissed talk about his lack of action on corruption as “a lot of nonsense”, accusing politicians of using corruption to play politics.

“Corruption has been used to create a political circus.”

In March last year, Uhuru suspended CSs Felix Kosgey (Agriculture), Davis Chirchir (Energy), Michael Kamau (Transport), Charity Ngilu (Water), Kazungu Kambi (Labour) plus a host of other Government officials were forced out of office to face graft investigations.

Waqo also defended his agency, stating that his mandate ends with investigations.

He also expressed frustrations in the fight against graft saying the exercise was a “complex war”.

Waqo fumbled when asked by Koinange why Waiguru was not being investigated while everybody linked to the loss of Sh791 million at National Youth Service was being investigated.

He said there was no evidence yet linking Ms Waiguru to the heist whose amount has risen to Sh1.8 billion.

Mr Tobiko gave statistics of high-profile individuals he has taken to court.

He said at least 800 high-profile individuals had been taken to court, adding that some have been successfully prosecuted.

He gave an example of former Eldoret South MP Peris Simam who has been jailed for 18 years but with an option of paying Sh10million as bail and former Ugenya MP Stephen Ondiek’s widow, Concelia Ondiek, who was sentenced to two years with no option of bail for forgery while working at the Ministry of Education.