Tetu MP, Geoffrey Wandeto has urged President Dr William Ruto to reveal the names of lawmakers engaged in corruption for the sake of public interest.
The lawmaker underscored that the statement made by the Head of State linking MPs to soliciting bribes is painting Parliament in a bad light in the eyes of the public; hence, such allegations should be investigated as a matter of urgency.
Wandeto asserted that those found culpable in the scandal should not only be named but also be charged before a court of law to avoid tarnishing the reputation of the entire House.
“I am not defending Parliament against allegations of corrupt tendencies but what I strongly object to is passing a blanket condemnation to an entire House. It could be true that some of our colleagues in the National Assembly could be steeped in graft but on the other hand it is equally true that majority of the legislators are men and women of integrity who wake up and go and do what they were elected to do by the voters,” he told Inooro TV breakfast show on Wednesday.
Wandeto’s remarks come in the wake of Dr Ruto’s accusations on Monday where he claimed that Parliament had turned into a soko-huru (open-air market) where money was exchanging hands before crucial bills could be passed.
During a joint Kenya Kwanza –ODM Parliamentary Group meeting at the KCB Leadership Centre in Karen on Monday, Dr Ruto alleged that lawmakers had literally transformed the House Business Committees into money-minting premises with some MPs receiving up to Sh10 million to delay the passage of bills.
He also accused Senate of having ‘saved’ an unnamed Governor from the jaws of impeachment after the latter agreed to part with Sh150 million.
“Do you, for example, know that a few members of your committee collected Sh10 million so that you don’t pass that law on anti-money laundering?” posed the President during the meeting.
“By the position I hold, I am a consumer of raw intelligence; I know what is going on. Where does somebody find Sh150 million? That is money that belongs to the county,” the president stated.
And while addressing this year’s Devolution Conference in Homa Bay the President accused members of parliament of abetting corruption by demanding bribes from Cabinet Secretaries and County bosses.
When asked whether he had witnessed money exchanging hands in Parliament or whether he had been a partaker of the cause, Wandeto maintained he had never come across such an incident.
He also stated categorically that his main task is to serve his constituency and anything else to the contrary has never formed part of his work.
“It is possible that a few of our fellow Members of Parliament could be taking bribes but to the best of my knowledge I have never encountered one such incident. Some of us are first time lawmakers and just like in any Commonwealth country, I am still green in matters pertaining to the running of Parliament. Therefore, my first priority is to ensure I represent the people of Tetu. That is the work they sent me to do when they voted for me,” he claimed.
Wandeto has also recommended a review of the criminal justice system in the country saying the current system is incapable of addressing the rampant sleaze in public institutions.
He argues that Kenyans will never shy away from engaging in graft as long as they are confident of buying back their freedom with the same loot they have stolen.
The legislator pointed out that the failure to address corruption and impunity in the county is not due to shortage of stringent legal framework but due to absence of goodwill to implement such existing laws.
“If we are ever going to slay this dragon of corruption, we must be deliberate about it. Corruption must never be viewed as a shortcut to easy wealth. It must become an unenviable and painful endeavour that anyone should shun like leprosy. But as long as one can loot public coffers and suffer no loss, eradicating this vice will remain elusive for ages,” he said.
By Samuel Maina
