Uhuru Kenyatta and Chapter 6: The highs and lows in his graft war

National Youth Service displayed their Skills during their pass-out parade in Gilgil, Nakuru County on June 10, 2022. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

On October 19, 2016, when corruption cases were at an all-time high during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s first term in office, he threw his hands in the air and asked the public what more they wanted him to do.

A clearly frustrated president told a gathering that included Cabinet Secretaries, the Chief Justice, the Inspector General of Police and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) that he had sacrificed a lot in the war against corruption but nothing was bearing fruit.

“Ladies and gentlemen, what do you want me to do? Let me ask you, what do you want me to do? You want me to go and set up a firing squad at Uhuru Park so that people can be happy? Mnataka nifanye nini jameni?” he posed.

Then on January 8, 2021, President Kenyatta was at it again when he claimed his government was losing more than Sh2 billion daily to corruption cartels.

That statement, which got many talking, summarised the president’s frustration during his 10-year tenure in the war against corruption.

An analysis by Transparency International on the country’s corruption index, which ranks countries and territories based on how corrupt their public sector is, shows that the level of corruption was high in President Kenyatta’s first term between 2013 and 2017 before it slightly reduced.

In 2013, the corruption index was at 27 per cent but the country became more corrupt in 2014 and 2015 with an index of 25 per cent (the corruption index is evaluated on a scale of 0-100 where zero means highly corrupt and 100 very clean).

Uhuru’s second term witnessed a little improvement in the fight against corruption as the index increased to 31 per cent in 2020 before reducing to 30 perc cent by the end of 2021 in which the country was ranked 128 out of 180 most corrupt countries in the world. Law Society of Kenya president Eric Theuri said President Kenyatta could have done more to fight corruption during his tenure and claims the war on graft was used as a weapon to settle political scores.

“The fight against corruption was weaponised and made a tool for fighting political enemies. That is why some people who were charged ended up being acquitted for lack of evidence because the real culprits of corruption were never brought to book,” said Theuri.

The LSK boss said the Jubilee government turned Chapter Six of the Constitution on leadership and integrity into a mere textbook chapter for academic exercises without any meaningful results to show that leaders were held to account in the past 10 years.

Some legal analysts also argue that it was difficult for Uhuru to implement the provisions on leadership and integrity on account that he also came to power in 2013 when facing charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague.

At the time he was elected to office, President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto were facing crimes against humanity charges at the ICC but an attempt by civil society groups to bar them from running for office was rejected by the courts.

Blame game

At one point, Uhuru’s frustrations in the war against corruption turned into a blame game between him, the Judiciary, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.

The president said the Judiciary was the weakest link in the war on graft, which sparked a war of words with then Chief Justice David Maraga, in defence of the Judiciary.

Justice Maraga told the president not to turn the Judiciary into a punching bag when other institutions fail in their duty to do proper investigations that can lead to the conviction of those charged with corruption.

“They should stop blaming the Judiciary when suspected corrupt individuals are acquitted. The Judiciary only does its job when presented with strong evidence. Every institution must carry its own cross if we are to succeed in the war against corruption,” he said.

In October 2016, anti-corruption crusader John Githongo declined to attend an anti-graft summit convened by President Kenyatta and dismissed his fight against as a mere public relations exercise.

Githongo said there was no need to meet at State House when the president could not lead the war on corruption from the front at a time when there was widespread public outcry on the plunder of public resources.

“You don’t end corruption by berating public officers appointed in front of a public television audience. The public has lost confidence in President Kenyatta because all the scandals we have witnessed have involved his close associates,” he said.

From 2013, Uhuru’s administration has witnessed some of the mega corruption scandals that left the public in awe.

From the National Youth Service scandal to the dams’ scandal, the country was treated to high-end corruption cases, which are yet to be concluded.

As the first president who ushered in devolution under the 2010 Constitution, Uhuru’s administration also witnessed massive corruption in the counties where several governors were charged with stealing funds they are meant to hold in trust for the people.

More than half of government ministries and State corporations have been engaged in corruption during Uhuru’s tenure as flagged by former Auditor General Edward Ouko in his reports of government expenditure between 2013 and 2018.

According to the auditor general, Jubilee administration lost almost Sh1 trillion per year to corruption in Uhuru’s first term in office.

Analysis of the auditor’s report presented to Parliament painted a grim picture of run-away corruption in which billions of public funds collected by the government could not be accounted for by the various ministries and State institutions.

“During the five-year period, a total amount of Sh4.2 trillion of collected government revenue could not be accounted for and were either lost, misappropriated or not spent well,” said the audit report.

Mr Ouko had concluded that the country suffers from weak and inadequate maintenance of accounting records, which gave leeway for government officials under the Jubilee administration to misappropriate public funds.

The first big scandal to rock President Kenyatta ‘s regime, which according to DPP Noordin Haji led to the loss of over Sh9 billion, was from NYS, which started in his first term and actualised in the second term.

Several officers from the State department and traders were charged in court with conspiracy to defraud the public of funds.

Charged with plunder

The plunder of NYS continued into Uhuru’s second term, where former Principal Secretary Lillian Omolo and several senior managers were charged with stealing close to Sh900 million from the youth service.

At the National Treasury, former CS Henry Rotich took the bullet for allegedly conspiring to defraud Sh63 billion in the construction of Arror and Kimwarer multi-purpose dams.

Several county governors were also dragged to court to face charges of corruption in which they were alleged to have stolen millions of shillings.

The governors charged include Ali Korane of Garissa, Muthomi Njuki of Tharaka Nithi, Moses Lenolkulal of Samburu, Okoth Obdao of Migori and former governors Ferdinand Waititu (Kiambu), Evans Kidero and Mike Sonko both of Nairobi.

The Ministry of Health was not left behind where Sh1 billion is alleged to have been lost at the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF).

This led charges against former NHIF Chief Executive Officer Simeon ole Kirgotty, his successor Geoffrey Mwangi, Manager for Legal Affairs Ruth Makallah, Procurement Manager Pamela Nyaboke and two directors of Webtrite Ltd Danson Muchemi and Robert Muriithi.

The six were charged alongside NHIF Board members Mudzo Nzili, Yussuf Ibrahim, Elly Opot and other staff Joseph Mbuvi, David Nzuki, Gibson Kamau, Irene Rono, Jacinta Mwangi, Gilbert Kamau, Kennedy Wakhu, Fredrick Onyancha, Millicent Mwangi, Matilda Mwangemi and Darius Mbogo.

According to the charge sheet, the theft at NHIF started between February 7, 2014 and August 15, 2014 when Kirgotty, Mwangi and Makallah entered into a contract with Webtrite Ltd for provision of integrated revenue collection services, which led to the loss of Sh1 billion.

Top managers at Kenya Power, including Chief Executive Officer Ken Tarus, were also sent home for conspiracy to defraud Sh750 million, abuse of office, willful failure to comply with procurement rules and conferring a benefit to a company that supplied sub-standard transformers.

Kenya Pipeline Company Ltd was another Stage agency hit by corruption in which the prosecution claimed that taxpayers lost Sh2 billion.

Former KPC Managing Director Joe Sang, Company Secretary Gloria Khafafa, Manager Supply Chain Vincent Cheruiyot, Manager Infrastructure Billy Aseka and Procurement Manager Nicholas Gitobu were subsequently charged with abuse of office and engaging in a project without planning. EACC Chief Executive Officer Twalib Mbarak said huge public funds have been going to waste in the last 10 years through collusion of public and accounting officers who should guard the public funds.