CoG accuses auditors of bribery, derailing anti-graft war

Council of Governors chairman Wycliffe Oparanya has accused some auditors of soliciting bribes in order to dish out favours.

The Kakamega governor said some of the agencies should be subjected to oversight as their actions have toughened the county-level fight against corruption.

“We have witnessed cases where auditors demanded bribes in order to dish out favours. We are in possession of this evidence," he said on Thursday during a consultative meeting of the CoG and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) on how to prevent graft.

"ICY RELATIONS"

While calling for the EACC to investigate the agencies, the governor noted the violation of financial management procedures at both levels of government.

He talked of icy relations between the national and county governments and said this results in loopholes that cause corruption to thrive.

Governor Oparanya also called out some of the private sectors players including contractors and suppliers, saying some perpetuate corruption in counties.

“To effectively fight corruption, we should look at the vice holistically,” said the CoG chairman.

POWER

Mr Oparanya further noted that it is difficult to fight graft as influential people benefit from the vice.

“The fight against corruption is proving difficult because there are people in power who have decided to benefit from it and the existing framework. Leaders lack both the will and capacity to stop them,” he said.

He, however, faulted the anti-graft agency over the arrest of colleagues accused of graft, terming it humiliating. 

“In the recent past, governors have been mishandled on allegations of corruption. We strongly oppose the manner in which the process has been handled and politicised by agencies,” he said.

“What is the point of going to arrest a governor with 20 vehicles, police dogs and the media in tow?"

CONTACT

On a light note, Mr Oparanya said he was sceptical when he received a call about the meeting from EACC chairperson Eliud Wabukala.

“And when the chair wrote to inform me of a planned meeting with EACC commissioners, I was very worried. I thought I was a victim,” he said amid laughter.

Mr Wabukala said he wants governors to be the first point of contact in the fight against graft in devolved units.

He noted that the agency has held several capacity buildings meetings in counties as part of efforts to fight the vice.

EFFORTS

On Monday, EACC chief executive Twalib Mbarak the agency had narrowed down to eight counties in its investigation into corruption claims in devolved units.

He said several governors were under the EACC's watch over graft-related offences.

And during a State House meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta, an official of the International Monetary Fund said Kenya is on the right path in its fight against corruption.
Mr Abebe Selassie, Director for African Departments, said the IMF is satisfied with the stable economic growth that averages between 5.5 and 6 percent as a result of fiscal reforms to ensure macroeconomic stability.