The Deputy CEO had the last laugh in graft probe and bounced back in office to the chagrin of his accusers.
A memo from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs last week announced the end to a dramatic six-year period for Michael Mubea at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission. While at the anti-graft body, Mr Mubea rose to the position of deputy Chief Executive Officer.
His time at EACC was not short of controversy, and he more than once found himself staring down the barrel of the anti-graft gun that he wielded over others. Most of the time however, not a single bullet, from those discharged in his direction grazed him.
Like the proverbial cat with nine lives, he always seemed to escape unscathed, and no matter the effort, mud slung by politicians or colleagues just couldn’t stick.
Allegations of impropriety
The first notable time he was mentioned for impropriety was in 2016 when the commission suspended him and sent him on forced leave at a time when he was in charge of investigations, crime prevention, legal services and holding nearly all EACC’s instruments of power.
In March of 2016, Mumo Matemu, the then EACC chairman suspended Mubea for a month, pending investigations over allegations of impropriety. A month later though, the decision was rescinded by Mubea’s immediate boss, the commission’s Chief Executive Halakhe Waqo.
A defiant Mubea was back in office vowing to stay put, insisting Mr Matemu had nothing on him.
“I have reported to work and, as you have seen, I am from the field on official duty. The law is clear on who should sack me. The CEO has told me to resume my duties,” Mubea said at the time.
But the turf wars between the two had just started, and a month later, another suspension letter was dispatched from the chairman’s office. This time, the suspension days sought were more. From the initial 30-day suspension, the ante had been upped to a 90-day suspension.
The bone of contention? The sale and transfer of Integrity Centre. Matemu also accused Mubea of hiding five files whose cases had been reported to the commission. The details of the said files were not made public.
At the time, it looked like the war that had been slowly simmering between the Commission- represented by Matemu and the EACC secretariat- represented by Mubea had been won by the former.
But the Deputy CEO with an affinity for dark, well-fitting suits and designer ties had the last laugh, staying true to himself and never failing to pull a rabbit from under his coat sleeves. Barely weeks after their spurring, Parliament adopted a report by the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee that recommended the dismissal of Matemu.
Mubea was to survive the next four years in office. While Matemu years were characterised by some of the biggest corruption scandals in the country, the deputy CEO remained steadfast in the belief that the commission was not only best placed to deal with graft, but was making headway too.
The screaming headlines of wanton looting and plunder doing little to dissuade his firm belief that sometimes bordered on irrationality.
Over the years, the graft agency has been accused of going after the small fish in the corruption game, occasionally attempting to nab corruption architects. Often though, this always falls flat on its face.
At some point, it felt like the EACC was playing catch-up to other state agencies such as the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) as well as the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) because, it seemed, mega crime looked like it went unpunished. There was talk of turf wars between the DCI and ODPP on one side and the EACC on the other
“This is a creation of the media,” Mubea said in a 2018 interview. “The DPP is working with all institutions that make his work successful. We have a fantastic relationship with the other bodies. The media should not create an issue where none exists.”
This summarised his relationship with the Fourth Estate. Quick to chastise it when pointing out commission shortcomings. But as a suave public servant, Mubea had also perfected the art of milking media attention to further the commission’s agenda.
And when the DCI and ODPP got new heads, unafraid of the glaring lights of the media he too upped his game and learnt quickly enough the importance of shaping narratives related to the commission’s work before the storytelling was hijacked by other competing interest.
In the last days in office, he assumed the role of chief communicator increasing media appearances and issuing statements infront of the infamous revolving doors at Integrity Centre, appearing and disappearing with statements as frequently as suspects made their way in and out.
He exits EACC at a time when the fight against corruption seems to be the only realistic legacy of the Jubilee administration.
If his nomination is approved by Parliament, Mubea will now enter into the sometimes lonely world of diplomacy, where he will serve as Kenya’s ambassador to Dublin in Ireland.
