You’ve my support in corruption war, Uhuru tells EACC

President Uhuru Kenyatta and EACC chairman Eliud Wabukala at State House, Nairobi yesterday. [PSCU]

President Uhuru Kenyatta has assured the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission that they have his full support and urged them to step up the fight against corruption.

The president advised the EACC to work closely with other agencies in the fight against the vice, saying the war against graft should not be a source of competition within Government

Uhuru made the statement when he held a meeting with the top leadership of the EACC led by chairman (Retired Archbishop) Eliud Wabukala and Chief Executive Officer Halake Waqo at State House Nairobi yesterday.

“Nothing will be further from the truth to say that you do not have my support,” said the president, as he urged the commission to work harder to support the achievement of Kenya’s development goals.

He said the anti-corruption fight will bear more fruit if it is conducted through the multi-agency framework which brings together the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI), the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the EACC and other security agencies.

The renewed anti-corruption drive has led to unprecedented arrests of graft suspects and arraignment in court of senior government officials suspected of involvement in the theft of public resources.

Questionable assets

The EACC leadership updated the president on recent milestones achieved by the commission in the the fight against corruption. In the last financial year, EACCrecovered illegally acquired assets and cash worth Sh488 million from individuals and institutions through court proceedings and out-of-court settlements.

Of the Sh488 million, Sh76 million were cash recoveries. The rest, Sh412 million, were in form of land and other immovable assets. Archbishop Wabukala informed Mr Kenyatta that his agency has acted proactively and disrupted 12 suspected cases of corrupt dealings and in the process saved the country an estimated Sh4.7 billion that would have otherwise been lost

Wabukala also briefed the president on the EACC’sstrategic plan for the year 2018/19 in which the commission prioritises its involvement in policy formulation and the promotion of ethical conduct among Kenyans.

The chairman said developing an ethical nation is more effective in protecting public resources than focusing on litigation and recovery of stolen assets.

He added that the EACC is continuously and closely monitoring the use of funds in the counties and is working with wananchi to ensure that public resources are used prudently.