Daniel Nyassy
16 May 2008
Nairobi — The recently launched anti-corruption campaign will not succeed without involving grassroots leadership, Malindi elders have said.
They said village elders should be fully integrated in the local committees that are being formed in various locations across the country.
On Thursday, the Sabaki Location elders appealed to the minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs to get down to the village levels and make the committees all-inclusive.
Led by Mr Stephen Mwanjenje of Mtangani village, the elders told reporters that they had noticed they were being sidelined and warned that "the campaign might not succeed if such a vital component of society is left out."
"Committees have started being formed at divisional levels. But we have noticed that the members are the same town people, most of who have been mentioned in corruption scandals in the past. Why are we not included?" they asked.
In her speech read by assistant minister William Cheptum in Malindi last week, minister Martha Karua said: "The Government has developed and adopted the concept of District Anti-corruption Civilian Oversight Committees (Daccocs) strategically to take the war against corruption to the grassroots in order to engage and involve more Kenyans at that level."
Ms Karua launched the Malindi Daccoc office and said similar offices would be opened countrywide.
She said good governance had for a long time been hampered by lack of transparency and accountability, poor communication links between the public and the Government and lack of trust.
Corrosive
Ms Karua said corruption was at all levels of society and it that it destroyed Government structures and hindered delivery of quality service.
"I call upon the people of Malindi to safeguard all Government devolved fund activities from the corrosive effects of corruption.," she said.
But the village elders said many such programmes had failed to reach the villagers before and feared that the anti-corruption crusade would also end at the district level.
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What is this they are calling Anti-Corruption Campaign? What happened to KACCA? Why have Kenyans developed such short memory?. It is only 3 years ago when four commissions of inquiries released their comprehensive reports on their findings on corruption and land grabbing in Kenya to the President. In 2003, Goldenburg commission of inquiry, Anglo leasing commission of inquiry,Ndungu commission of inquiry and the Ouko commission of inquiry were instituted to investigate and report their findings to Kenyans. In 2005, all of them gave their reports to the President. The Commissions used millions of Kenya shillings in their investigations yet the reports remain secretive up to this day. Now more money, which will certainly run into millions of Kenya shillings, is intended to be used in the Anti-corruption campaign. As if this is source of wealth, many Kenyans are crying loud to be involved in the new campaign. Why are Kenyans convinced that the government will be genuine and sincere on Anti-corruption campaign unlike on the reports on the findings of the commissions of inquiries? Kenyans should wake up. They should reason with realities. Why are they silent on the reports of the commissions? Intead of appoving the Anti-corruption campaign, Kenyans should demand for the release of the reports of the commissions, which I am sure will solve the Kenyan problem on corruption and land grabbing. Wake up Kenyans and let us all demand for the release of the reports. The reports are our property because our money was usd to run the commissions. Kenyans have a right to know who were involved in the Goldenburg scandal, the Anglo leasing scandal, the land grabbing scandal and the Ouko murder. The Anti-Corruption campaign will come out with the same report. Why then waste mjoney for what is ready? Release the reports now. Newton Kinity