John Githongo: Why EACC has not made much headway

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) is ineffective in fighting corruption, former Ethics and Governance Permanent Secretary John Githongo has said.

Githongo argued the anti-graft framework was implemented in a hurry without consideration of the country’s traditions and cultural values and their applicability.

John Githongo

“Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission was constituted after the International Monetary Fund threatened to stop aid. Its Western-borrowed mechanisms were not deliberated for posterity to make them effective in fighting graft,” he said.

“This has been compounded by the overrated legal systems, with the judiciary taking the blame always,” he added.

He added: “In Kenya the best way to protect yourself from graft cases is to get elected then you will have influence over all State arms.”

Robust laws

Githongo was addressing civil society groups and parliamentarians from across the East African region during a workshop aimed at creating a joint strategy to fight the vice.

“Stolen funds are always traceable on the lifestyles of those who hold those offices. Budgets are not constituted on public needs but on the needs of their servants. That is why we keep borrowing more to steal more,” said nominated MP Isaac Mwaura.

Lauding EACC’s pronouncement that former Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru is now a suspect and not a State witness in the Sh791 million National Youth Service scandal, Mwaura said the graft body has robust laws but fails in oversight.

Ugunja MP Opiyo Wandayi refuted claims that the Opposition is to blame for the country’s bad image over corruption.

“As Opposition, we are in no business of mob lynching. If it happens you run a docket that has been implicated in corruption. In fact, it is our noise against corruption that has made international investors to have more trust in the country,” said Opiyo.

According to a report that will be launched today by a conglomerate of civil society groups, efforts made by the media and civil society to expose corruption are hampered by laws and institutions which lead to these cases being smothered by Executive orders or be entangled in convoluted political processes.

Related Topics

John Githongo