EACC wary lawmakers may weaken war on corruption

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has accused lawmakers of plotting to water down the war on graft through the proposed amendments to the Conflict of Interest Bill.

EACC Chief Executive Officer Twalib Mbarak said on Monday, June 10, the suggested changes by the Senate were illegal and asked the National Assembly to reject them.

The Conflict of Interest Bill was introduced last year and aims to stop public officers from having one leg in public service and another in private practice.

“The commission has noted with concern the proposals made by the Senate to review and amend the Conflict of Interest Bill, 2023, being the National Assembly Bills number 12 of 2023. The Senate passed the Bill on May 16, 2024 with proposals of substantial amendments,” Mr Mbarak said in a letter to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Samuel Njoroge.

The Nation has learnt that the EACC chairman Bishop David Oginde and Mr Mbarak met with National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula as part of the push to rally the House to block the Senate’s proposals.

Negative impact

Mr Mbarak said that some of the proposals being fronted by the Senate, after being tabled by Bomet Senator Henry Sigei, will have a negative impact in the fight against corruption.

Some of the issues that Mr Mbarak said needed to be rectified are; removal of EACC from administration of the Act, deletion or provisions on Conflict of Interest in other legislations and removal of the proposed compliance measures in management of conflict of interest.

Others are; EACC staff from the rank of Deputy Director and above shall be subject to the Powers and Privileges Committee of the National Assembly and address access to the Declaration of Income, Assets and Liabilities by retaining section 31 of the bill.

Mr Mbarak said that the commission was ready to engage further to provide any clarifications or additional information as may be required.

The original Bill was approved by the Cabinet early last year and forwarded to the National Assembly for enactment into law, as part of the conditions imposed on Kenya by development partners such as the International Monetary Fund.

Embezzlement of public funds

The Bill has helped tame rampant embezzlement of public funds by State officials who used to trade with the government directly or through proxies who include relatives and associates.

If the changes are made, that means that, henceforth, there will be no punishment for State officials doing business with the government or giving tenders to relatives.

Currently, the Bill, as mutilated by the Senate, is back at the National Assembly for concurrence and transmission to the President for assent.

Transparency International-Kenya has also waded into the matter and expressed disappointment with the Senate’s decision to mutilate the Bill through amendments.

“By removing the sanction that defines conflict of interest and stripping the EACC of its implementing authority, the Senate has severely weakened the Conflict of Interest Bill, compromising the fight against corruption and effectively legislating State officials’ ability to engage in self-serving business practices without fear of punishment,” the lobby group said in a statement.

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