CORD: President Uhuru Kenyatta playing politics with corruption

President Uhuru Kenyatta has insisted that officials mentioned in EACC report must step aside to allow investigations.

Nairobi, Kenya: The Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) has dismissed President Uhuru Kenyatta’s directive on officials linked to corruption terming it rhetoric.

The coalition told the president to fight and stop playing politics with corruption.

“We wish to challenge the President from the outset to choose between playing politics with corruption and fighting it; between fighting opponents and supposed political enemies and saving his government and our country from the stifling grip of corruption,” said CORD in a statement.

The coalition told Uhuru to choose between business as usual, politics as usual and a radical transformation that will save the country billions being lost in the bottomless pit of corruption.

“What the president delivered yesterday is an attempt at whitewashing corruption and a move to compromise war on corruption while purporting to be fighting the vice,” read the statement.

While criticising the manner in which the report was acted upon, the coalition also said that Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) is inept in handling graft in the country.

“In the President’s speech, we see the clearest confirmation of what we have always suspected; that the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission is a confused and compromised institution that can no longer be trusted to fight corruption,” said CORD.

President Uhuru Thursday handed report by EACC to National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi and his Senate counterpart Ekwe Ethuro and asked both Houses to act on it. It is to remain secret until Tuesday 31, March when it will be tabled.

At the centre of criticism is EACC’s move to hand the report to the President rather than then Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) office which is charged with prosecuting suspects.