President William Ruto has declared war on corruption within Parliament, warning that legislators implicated in bribery scandals will face arrest and prosecution.
Dr Ruto, speaking during a joint parliamentary group meeting between Kenya Kwanza Alliance and the Orange Democratic Movement on Monday, lashed out at MPs and Senators accused of soliciting money to influence legislative decisions.
“They are collecting money in the name of Parliament, and sometimes that money never gets to Parliament. Instead, it ends up in the pockets of a few individuals. We are not going to shame them; we are going to apprehend them,” Dr Ruto told the gathering.
The President revealed that intelligence reports reaching him point to a culture of bribery that has infiltrated parliamentary committees.
According to him, the practice has become so entrenched that some members of the House now expect kickbacks as a condition for carrying out their duties.
“I am a consumer of raw intelligence. Do you, for example, know that a few members of the House here received up to Sh10 million to pass the Anti-Money Laundering Bill? Do you know that? Did you get the money?” he asked, drawing a tense silence in the chamber.
Without naming names, Dr Ruto further disclosed that one senator had allegedly pocketed Sh150 million to sway the outcome of a matter before the House. “There are people who are destroying the credibility of Parliament. Some of the time, that money never gets to Parliament: it only gets to a few people,” he said.
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Dr Ruto linked these claims to last month’s passage of the Anti-Money Laundering Bill, suggesting that powerful interests had attempted to compromise the process through hefty inducements, including cheques channelled to legislators.
This comes amid growing concern over corruption in Kenya’s institutions, with the President insisting that no one would be spared, regardless of political affiliation or rank, stressing that graft was undermining the very credibility of Parliament.
“The culture of impunity must stop. The time has come for us to confront and eradicate this vice once and for all,” he said.
This is not the first time the President has taken aim at the House. Only last week, while opening the National Devolution Conference in Eldoret on August 13, he accused MPs of holding legislation hostage in exchange for handouts. Then, as now, he insisted that Parliament must be held accountable.
By bringing the matter up twice in less than a week, Dr Ruto appears intent on signalling that corruption in the corridors of Parliament has reached intolerable levels. Whether prosecutions follow will now be the ultimate test of his administration’s resolve.
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