Now is time to exorcise Anglo Leasing ghost once and for all

If it were a child, the Anglo Leasing rip off would be a teenager today. The ghosts of this mega scandal have been with us for far too long and must be exorcised for good.

One part of the Anglo-Leasing mess that requires more scrutiny is the growing evidence that Government could be conducting selective investigations all for the purpose of appeasing the public.

We want to categorically state that we hold no brief for any of the parties involved. We have nothing personal against any of the parties involved. And we seek no special attention from any of the parties involved. But we demand that any investigation into this and related scams must lead to closure. This Anglo Leasing story has festered for too long and fatigue is slowly creeping in. We must not allow this exhaustion to prevent us from seeing a just end to this disgrace.

But the manner in which the police and anti-corruption authorities have been handling the matter raise serious questions as to their commitment to finding a lasting solution to the scandal.

When public discontent grew loud after President Uhuru Kenyatta approved the Sh1.4 billion, which was paid out to Universal Satspace and First Mercantile, both owned by Anura Perera, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission summoned Deepak Kamani for questioning and alerted the media.

As long as some perpetrators of Anglo-Leasing are made to believe they are above the law and the institutions of justice pander to that belief – grilling of suspects as witnessed last Wednesday, will seem selective and lose legitimacy.

And Kenyans in their millions will continue to disclaim collective political responsibility for the payments made in their name by the government.

It is quite in order to summon Kamani and question him. After all, he initiated part of the venture through which this country lost hundreds of millions of shillings in shadowy dealings. But keen students of history must have realised by now that successive governments seem to be following the same script as regards Anglo-Leasing investigations in the past eight years. The plot has never changed – huge amounts of money are paid, followed by public uproar, then Kamani is picked, the media is tipped and when the story of interrogation hits the headlines, the Anglo Leasing ghosts are appeased and it’s a return to business as usual. It happened in 2006, 2010 and the script was repeated early this week.

In the subsequent political firestorm that followed these episodes, government promised to recover the money from five individuals who had benefited from Anglo Leasing and similar deals. The fact that known directors of companies linked to Anglo-Leasing are never summoned for questioning, is neither congruent with the facts nor with perceptions of their involvement in the scam.

Since to be free and fair an investigation or trial must always include the possibility of a not-guilty verdict, all individuals linked with the scandal should be allowed the liberty to tell their side of the story as we begin the journey to closure. Investigations into scandals of Anglo-Leasing magnitude are supposed to be scrupulously nonpartisan. But this principle appears to have broken down in this case.

There is perception of selective justice and inertia that the government and investigating authorities must dispel.

The best way to dismiss accusations of selectiveness is to show that nets are being cast as wide as possible.

This is why the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Authority needs to move quickly to ensure that all individuals linked to the scam are called in for interrogation.

The list of projects that were to be carried out under Anglo-Leasing is public. Some were completed and paid for, others were never done while a number have been partially done. The significance of this is that Anglo Leasing is still here with us until a justifiable solution is reached. This is why the Jubilee government must discard the apathetic attitude with which previous administrations have treated the scandal and adopt a more proactive approach. Kenyans want, and they are entitled to, serious action.