Sack ministers over scandals, leaders told

Three Cabinet ministers on Sunday asked President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga to sack their colleagues whose dockets are rocked by scandals if they do not step aside for investigations.

Speaking separately, Tourism minister Najib Balala and Lands minister James Orengo said scandals in the Agriculture and Energy ministries had given the government a bad name.

Both Mr Ruto and Mr Murungi, who head the Agriculture and Energy ministries respectively, have insisted they will not resign in the face of increased pressure to go.

Mr Ruto may soon face a motion of censure in Parliament over the way he handled the sale of subsidised maize by the National Cereals and Produce Board.

Mr Murungi is on the spot over the Triton oil scandal in which businessman Yagnesh Devani vanished with Sh7.6 billion in oil sales proceeds.

Mr Balala said the only way the government can redeem itself is by ensuring that those adversely mentioned resign.

“This is the time for President Kibaki to take action and clean the government that is being tainted by a few people who want to enrich themselves,” said Mr Balala.

He was speaking at a madrassa awards ceremony at Majengo Ropa in his Mvita constituency.

Mr Orengo said sacking senior government officials implicated in corruption would show the two principals’ commitment to fighting high-level corruption. He said corruption had affected service delivery.

“I would never want to be in a government in which people are starving. The President and Prime Minister should send home corrupt ministers,” he added.

Confidence

The Lands minister was speaking in Siaya town during the official opening of an Equity Bank branch.

Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Martha Karua on Sunday said sacking ministers and senior civil servants implicated in corruption was vital in restoring people’s confidence in the grand coalition government.

She was speaking at Koaptabuk village in Sigor constituency during a meeting to raise funds for three university students.

Elsewhere, Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Sunday defended the government against corruption accusations. He said the grand coalition government was not as badly hit by scams as past regimes.

The PM challenged those accusing the government to cite any scandal comparable to Anglo Leasing and Goldenberg scams.

He distanced the government from the oil scandal, saying it involved officials of the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) and Triton.

Mr Odinga said KPC employees colluded with Triton officials to release oil before payment was made to the bank.

“That is direct theft by a company. How does it become government corruption?” he asked.

On the maize scandal, Mr Odinga said the government was determined to get to the bottom of the matter.

“We have commissioned a forensic audit on the maize issue to give a clear state of affairs. We would not do that if we had wanted to cover up,” he said.

He was speaking at Nyamira ACK Church in Bondo District during a memorial service to mark the 15th anniversary of the doyen of opposition politics, the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga.

Reported by Mazera Ndurya, Daniel Otieno, Edward Koech, Cosmas Butunyi and Eric Oloo