There’s no evidence Jubilee wants to fight graft

Governments across the world are routinely buffeted by scandals. State bureaucracies are multifaceted labyrinthine entities that attract all kinds of characters. Sooner or later, some of these characters engage in unseemly conduct. So the revelation of scandal itself is typically not a great indicator of governmental performance. In fact, it is the case that more transparent governments are more likely to see scandals exposed. However, it matters how governments react to scandals.

Government reaction often tells us the extent to which the leadership of the administrative apparatus is committed to good governance. So how does the Kenyan government react to corruption scandals? I am afraid to say that, right now, the Uhuru Kenyatta administration is acting like it exists to protect unscrupulous individuals who feel entitled to our hard-earned tax shillings. There is not a shred of evidence that the government even pretends to care about good governance anymore. All signals indicate that state coffers are fair game for anyone interested in looting. And as a country, we are increasingly exposed to a common pool problem. The different factions within government are in open competition about who can loot the most in the least amount of time. Nobody, not even the Treasury Secretary Henry Rotich, appears to care about the big picture anymore.