CORD: List of shame a ploy by President Uhuru Kenyatta to weaken Opposition

Siaya Senator James Orengo and his Machakos counterpart Johnstone Muthama both of whom have been mentioned in the EACC report.

Kenya: The Coalition for Reforms and Democracy kept up its criticism of President Uhuru Kenyatta's decision to name top public officials implicated in corruption and to demand they temporarily leave office to facilitate investigations.

Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero, who is among those mentioned, maintained he would stay put as he had not been summoned by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to answer to any corruption allegations.

"We ought to know what are the allegations and who are our accusers? We support the fight against graft but due process has to be followed. The law is very clear on how a governor can be removed from office. Most governors don't know what they are being accused of," Dr Kidero told reporters yesterday after a church service in Karen.

Earlier, Kidero had scoffed at the President's directive that the named officials step aside to facilitate investigations.

"President Kenyatta can take action against Cabinet Secretaries and other Government appointed officers but not elected ones. We support the effort against graft but it must be done according to the law where people who are suspected are investigated, charged and punished as the Constitution stipulates," said Dr Kidero on Saturday evening during a burial in Lugari constituency, Kakamega County.

Ndung'u report

And Siaya Senator James Orengo, who is also on the list, said the President and his deputy William Ruto should address corruption cases systematically and fairly, without any bias.

"Carry everyone on board without any selection of a given political party. That is the only way to resolve the corruption issue in this country. I will carry my cross and I have always done it because I am not afraid at all," Mr Orengo said on Saturday evening during the burial of North Ugenya member of County assembly Benson Onyango Omondi in Sega Ugenya.

Opposition MPs accused the Jubilee government of selective action against corruption. They challenged Uhuru to implement recommendations of a commission that investigated the irregular acquisition of public land.

The MPs told the President to implement the Ndung'u land report, named after the chairman of the commission Paul Ndung'u, which linked prominent personalities to fraudulent acquisition of public land, to demonstrate his commitment to fighting graft.

MPs Fred Outa (Nyando), Opondo Kaluma (Homa Bay town), Timothy Bosire (Kitutu Masaba), Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja), Gideon Ochanda (Bondo), Nicholas Gumbo (Rarieda), Jakoyo Midiwo (Gem,  Simba Arati (Dagoretti North), Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja) and Opondo Kaluma (Homa Bay Town) said the fight against corruption should not be seen as witch hunt.

Mr Outa said the President should crack the whip on every graft case affecting the public including the Ndung'u report.

"The credibility of EACC is questionable and therefore the President cannot trust entirely what the commission has released," he said.

Mr Kaluma claimed Uhuru was playing politics and was selective in the fight against corruption.

"He has deliberately chosen to neglect the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) and the Ndung'u land reports, among others. The apology he purported to give was to be given under a legal framework recommended in the TJRC report, not in the casual way he did," Kaluma said.

"This war should benefit Kenyans and the global business people. A pandora's box has been opened, there is no moving back. Time has come to stop illegal allocation of resources to undeserving areas and regions," said Mr Bosire.

Mr Midiwo praised the President but said the net should be extended to Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission but Mr Gumbo said it was improper for the President to ask governors to step aside.

"Corruption is our major setback and fighting it will need a lot of straightforwardness. You should start with the closest person to you. We do not want window-dressing games," Gumbo said.

 Taint image

Mr Ochanda said the only reason Cabinet Secretaries were stepping aside was to find something against Opposition leaders who had not yet done so.

"If you come up with a list and mention people's names and then you allege that they are corrupt, how are you fighting corruption? This list is meant to trap us and taint the image of the Opposition's leaders and implicate," he said.

"EACC is an independent constitutional body and not even Uhuru can purport to be giving directions to it. Instructing the commission to carry out the investigations within 60 days is ill-advised and is a cosmetic affair whose end product is predictable," said Mr Wandayi. Kaluma alleged that EACC has lost its independence and is currently a political tool for the President's political schemes.