The Attorney General, Dorcas Oduor, has challenged leaders to entrench the nation into anti-corruption action path in no uncertain terms since corruption is a threat that can destroy the country and her future generations.
Speaking during the EACC 56th National Coordinating Committee (NCC) meeting of the Kenya Leadership Integrity Forum (KLIF), the Attorney General observed that time had come to make a change not for ourselves but for future generations and secure the exquisite jewel that Kenya is.
Odour noted that the war against corruption was a collective endeavour where each one has a role to play by actively participating in anti-corruption initiatives to promote integrity and accountability in the country.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Office of the Attorney General compact the institutions embedded in the Kenya Leadership Integrity Forum in undertaking the mandate to collaborate in the fight against corruption and promotion of ethics in the country.
“The Kenya Leadership Forum is a moral compass to align our national conscience with values enshrined in chapter six of the Constitution,” said the A.G., reiterating the collective force for change moving beyond blame to taking responsibility, from declarations to decisions and putting policies to practice.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) is mandated under the EACC Act No. 22 of 2011 to establish and maintain strategic linkages with other stakeholders in the rule of law and other governance sectors.
Consequently, the Kenya Leadership Integrity Forum (KLIF) was established as a partnership and governance initiative for a unified and integrated approach in the promotion of ethics and integrity.
The Kenya Integrity Plan (KIP) 2023-2028 provides for quarterly meetings for the Sector Coordinating Committee (SCC) to spearhead the implementation of the Plan. It further outlines several programs and activities to be implemented by all sectors in enhancing institutional integrity.
The meeting brought together stakeholders from the 20 KLIF sectors to intensify collaboration between both State and non-state actors in the fight against corruption and unethical conduct in Kenya.
Corruption prevalence in the public service and indeed the Kenyan society in general was identified as a major impediment to economic development.
In line with Ethics and Anti-corruption Prevention Committee Guidelines 2023, the Principal Secretary State Department for Transport Mohamed Daghar appointed the Corruption Prevention Committee (CPC) and Integrity Assurance Officers (IAO) to spearhead anti-corruption and integrity initiatives.
Top management in the State Department are committed to combating corruption guided by the overarching theme of enhancing governance and upholding a zero tolerance to corruption within the public service.
The state department developed the Bribery and Corruption Risk Assessment and Mitigation Plan (BCRA&MP) which provides a framework for mapping areas prone to corruption and unethical conduct while putting in place mitigation measures.
The PS emphasized the importance of fighting corruption starting at individual level to institutional levels.
By Joseph Kamolo Mutua
