The openness with which the media, civil society and the public are discussing and exposing alleged corrupt dealings by Government officials is an amazing expression of how far our democracy has come. Just 20 years ago, such conversations were held in whispers.

This means that even though one might not necessarily agree with the substance being discussed, most Kenyans agree the form in which it is discussed shows how far our democracy has progressed, and especially how central the right of expression has become to how Kenyans view themselves and their government.

But what really are the facts about the fight against corruption in Kenya? First, there has been tremendous progress in the fight against corruption.

Senior government officials who have been implicated in major corruption scandals have been forced out of office. Some 337 cases relating to corruption are in court.

About 175 involve senior officials in this or past governments including Members of Parliament, governors, ministers and principal or permanent secretaries.

A few others have been shown the door. This fact is being obscured by the noises around how well it is being done.

Second, the principle of separation of powers is not being given enough focus. The 2010 Constitution of Kenya specifically created and mandated institutions like the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the Judiciary, the Department of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to operate independently of each other and of the executive on matters of corruption.

The executive can do very little in this area outside these institutions. Third, in this war against corruption, the institutions above are working without interference from Government.

The Judiciary, EACC and DPP work so independently that they sometimes conflict. On several occasions, decisions made by one institution have actually stopped another from doing its work!

Again, the noise about what is happening is so much that not enough credit is being given to the fact that the Jubilee government is allowing each independent institution to do what it feels is the right thing, even when some of those decisions clearly frustrate the direction the President might want taken on an issue.

None of the pundits discussing corruption and condemning the Government for doing nothing about it are pointing out that the days when judges were instruments of politics and executed decisions of the executive are long gone.

Fourth, the debate about how corrupt Kenya has become ignores the fact that one of the powers corruption has is silence on its operations.

The mere fact that this silence is no longer protecting corruption is an indication that there is a war against corruption!

Fifth, public discourse on corruption is being made to look at the consistency of messages coming from President Kenyatta as mere rhetoric, rather than a fact that one’s commitment to an issue is judged on how often he talks about it in exactly the same way.

Critics of the President’s war on corruption are strategically ignoring the fact that the President has been saying the same thing consistently even when close allies to him are mentioned.

It is impossible to form a government that does not have someone in it willing to misuse their authority.

The point I am making is that there is a deliberate attempt by the Kenyan opposition and some elements within the media to politicise the war against graft and use it to undermine public confidence in the Jubilee administration.

This is unethical, maybe immoral, but not necessarily illegal. It is also one option of playing politics.

What will actually help move this war forward is specific discontent. Kenyans need to demand that those who are genuine in improving the war against corruption move beyond just attacking the Government by claiming it’s not doing anything, to explaining exactly what it is they want done that the Government has a mandate to do, but has refused.

We must not allow pessimists and political tacticians to use the war against corruption to discourage us from fighting it.

Anyone driven by sinister motives must be named and shamed out of the way in this war.

In conclusion, Kenyans must realise that the war against graft will not be fought or won through accusations and counter-accusations, however sensational they might be.

The way to fight and win this war is by providing factual information to the constitutionally mandated institutions that fight corruption, then challenging and following them up to do something about it and demanding a change of leadership in them when they do not.

The fight against corruption is a process, not an event. Jubilee has oiled the wheels of the process and progress, though slow, is being made. Let us join hands and move this fight forward, and up.