WIKILEAKS - HOW TRUE IS THIS?

For the past few weeks the whistleblower site Wikileaks has been publishing US diplomatic cables from all over the world. Kenya and its leadership have not been spared either. The cables have been too blunt in their description of world leaders. Our very own have been described as “old guard” and the country has been described as a haven of corruption and drug trafficking. I therefore do understand the fury of the President and the Right Honorable Prime Minister as regards to the leaked US diplomatic cables which have cast aspersions as to their commitment to the reform agenda. But on the other hand they should be grateful to the Wikileaks publishers for bringing to light how the US foreign policy/diplomacy works. However let’s not forget the content of the leaked cables. The cables would not have been published at a more opportune time than now when the country is grappling with the problems of drugs trafficking and corruption at the highest levels. Rather than engage in public mud-smearing competition with the US ambassador, the two Principals should be convening meetings with security chiefs and anti-corruptions tsars to deliberate on how these two problems will be dealt with once and for all.

DOES LOW PAY REALLY LEAD TO CORRUPTION?

Many have argued that corruption abounds in our institutions due to meager salaries paid to the employees; others have argued differently. Looking at the case of Kenya, the most high profile cases of corruption have been perpetuated by high ranking government officials in collusion with well oiled business men hence its hardly a case of meager salaries. We also have heard of cases where persons who hardly had meals for the next day have returned substantial amounts of money which did not belong to them. If then the argument that meager pay/wages leads to corruption these persons would not even have had a second thought on whether to return the money or not. Another case in point is that of the famous Goldenberg whistle-blower who died out of lack of money to cater for his medical expenses. Again if really pay induces one to engage in corrupt practices this man would have had greater motivation to do so than the actual Goldenberg crooks.

TAMING THE DEADLY BEAST – CORRUPTION: Fight with renewed vigour!!!

The World Bank defines governance as the manner in which public officials and institutions acquire and exercise the authority to shape public policy and provide public goods and services. The World Bank further identifies six indicators of good public governance which include: control of corruption; voice and accountability; rule of law; government effectiveness; and quality of regulation and political stability.

The Kenyan government has been found wanting especially in the area of controlling corruption. Various government officials have been variously mentioned in corruption cases. Some have so far left their plum positions as investigation are carried out on these allegations. Others are still sitting tight hoping that the ghosts of corruption that are lurking in their closets will remain there. Let all who have in one way or another swindled the taxpayer of their hard-earned money be warned that their days are numbered.

BAD POLITICS WILL LEAD US TO A PATH OF DESTRUCTION ONCE MORE

Writing in a local daily immediately after the post-elections violence that had engulfed the nation, a renowned political scientist argued that the National Accord had come a bit too early. When I read the article I was a little bit apprehensive; I could not understand how one would advocate for the violence to go on even for a minute longer. Fast forward two years to the current ICC debacle as well as the games being played out in parliament and I could be more in agreement with the author. For a country like Rwanda, they learnt their lesson the hard way. Hundreds of thousands of innocent lives were lost before they came to the realization of what was happening to them. As country we are lucky to have come out united, but we are very fast at forgetting the price we had to pay for our mistakes. The blood of the innocent men, women and children who lost their lives in a battle that did not deserve to be fought should not be in vain. We should honor their memories by uniting; by shunning negative ethnicity; by engaging in activities to foster peace and unity amongst our communities.

EFFECTS OF CORRUPTION

Transparency International (TI) defines corruption as the “misuse of entrusted power for private gain”.  They further define “private gain” to include gains accruing to an economic actor’ close family members, political party and in some cases to an independent organization or charitable institution in which the economic actor has a financial or social interest. Corruption maybe manifested in the following ways: bribery of local or foreign government officials and private companies, fraud, bid submission fraud, embezzlement, theft, collusion among bidders, bribery of parliamentarians and so many more. In Kenya we have seen the manifestation of all these forms of corruption. Corruption has an effect on so many areas in an economy.

Corruption and socio-economic conditions of a nation: Socio-economic factors include the wealth of a country, the distribution of national income and how the public revenues are invested in the overall structure of the state, which fundamentally shapes the quality of life of the population. When funds that are meant for development projects such building of health facilities or for provision of basic amenities such as water and sanitation facilities are diverted to the pockets of a few individuals, it is the general populace that suffers.

ILLICIT DRUGS TRADE RIFE IN KENYA

The drugs/narcotics menace in the country is a serious problem that needs immediate and decisive government action on all that are involved in the illicit trade. Having lived in Mombasa for close to eight years I have had the chance to see firsthand the effects of the drugs on the youth and it is not any good. The Member of Parliament for Central Imenti has made very serious allegations against some former top-ranking officials in the government and we can only wait and see what the investigations that have been promised by the Right Honorable will reveal. It is however common knowledge that very senior people are involved in the trade.

The drugs trade in Mombasa is a trade that is done in the open with the full awareness of the security officials in the ground. The middle-men and the peddlers are well known to the police and it is not surprising to even find them having meals together or even in pubs drinking and making merry. The police also collect some kind of “protection” money from the “agents”.  In return the police notify them when a raid is about to be carried out. In some areas the police are known to collect more than 20,000 shillings on a weekly basis which is known as “pesa ya kiwanja”. This simply means that the agents pay the police for them to operate within a certain area.  If this money is not forthcoming that is when the police raids are intensified. The claim that the police are unaware of the illicit trade is just but a big charade.

ETHICAL MANAGEMENT AND GOOD GOVERNANCE IN OUR PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS

“A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon this world” Albert Camus

Ethics is about the guiding values, principles and standards that help people determine how ‘things ought to be done’. It refers to the judgements that people make and the process of arriving at those judgements. It is the process by which people make value-based decisions. Upholding the principles and standards of right conduct by public office holders at all levels of government is an important aspect of public service ethics.

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), corporate governance is one key element in improving economic efficiency and growth as well as enhancing investor confidence. Corporate governance involves a set of relationships between a company’s management, its board, its shareholders and other stakeholders. Corporate governance also provides the structure through which the objectives of the company are set, and the means of attaining those objectives and monitoring performance are determined. Good corporate governance provides proper incentives for the board and management to pursue objectives that are in the interests of the company and its shareholders and facilitates effective monitoring. The presence of an effective corporate governance system, within an individual company and across an economy as a whole, helps to provide a degree of confidence that is necessary for the proper functioning of a market economy.