URP MPs say war on graft biased, ask Uhuru to reinstate ministers
Nandi County Senator Stephen Sang speaking during a past event. South Rift MPs want President Uhuru Kenyatta to reinstate Cabinet Secretaries who have been cleared of graft allegations. FILE PHOTO | COPPERFIELD LAGAT | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Nandi Senator Stephen Sang, Emurua Dikir MP Johanna Ngeno and Alfred Keter of Nandi Hills on Tuesday said the failure to restore the CSs would derail service delivery in their respective ministries.
- Mr Keter questioned why Mr Koskei and Mr Chirchir were still in the cold while Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru who was also mentioned in the graft allegations was still in office.
- The MPs also faulted the manner in which the Government was leading the war on graft, saying the ‘list of shame’ had been politicised “to send home leaders from certain regions without conclusive proof of corruption”.
South Rift MPs want President Uhuru Kenyatta to reinstate Cabinet Secretaries who have been cleared of graft allegations.
Nandi Senator Stephen Sang, Emurua Dikir MP Johanna Ngeno and Alfred Keter of Nandi Hills on Tuesday said the failure to restore the CSs would derail service delivery in their respective ministries.
Mr Sang said failure to reinstate the CSs could be a plan to bundle them out for political reasons.
“The government wants to bundle out some ministers, but since it will raise the political temperatures, they are buying time with this graft issue,” Mr Ngeno told Nation.co.ke on phone.
Five CSs including Charity Ngilu (Lands), Felix Koskei (Agriculture), Michael Kamau (Transport), Kazungu Kambi (Labour) and Davis Chirchir of energy had four months ago stepped aside to allow for investigations on graft allegations against them.
However, the Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko (DPP) has cleared Mr Koskei and Mr Chirchir of their allegations.
STILL IN OFFICE
Mr Keter questioned why Mr Koskei and Mr Chirchir were still in the cold while Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru who was also mentioned in the graft allegations was still in office.
“We are now reading politics over this delay. Some people want to shortchange URP. The ministers should be brought back or else we reconsider our stand in the coalition,” Keter said.
President Kenyatta has since instructed Industrialization CS Adan Mohamed to act in the Agriculture docket, Health CS James Macharia (Transport), Treasury CS Henry Rotich (Energy) while Ms Raychael Omamo of defense is acting Labour CS.
“We cannot have one CS overseeing two big ministries and expect work to run smoothly as usual. At one point, those standing in for others will be overwhelmed. Let those who have been cleared be brought back,” said Mr sang.
LIST POLITICISED
The MPs also faulted the manner in which the Government was leading the war on graft, saying the ‘list of shame’ had been politicised “to send home leaders from certain regions without conclusive proof of corruption”.
Mr Ngeno said it was unfair that some underperforming ministers continued to “enjoy” in the offices yet some who had been cleared of graft were being punished for nothing.
“Underperformance and graft are vices of the same magnitude and if reshuffles were to be done, the underperforming ones should be shown the door and let those who have been declared clean be reinstated,” said Mr Ngeno.
