Ringera, Lumumba on State House intrigues and sacred graft lords
Lawyer Patrick Lumumba (left) and former director of anti-graft agency Aaron Ringera.
What you need to know:
- Mr Lumumba quoted the minister telling him: “You are making laws as if we are angels in Kenya.”
- The anti-graft czar responded: “If you don’t want to change the law, allow me to leave.”
On September 8, 2009, Mr Okong’o Omogeni, the chairperson of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC) advisory board, was about to address a press conference when he was alerted to an urgent telephone call from State House.
At the time, there was a standoff about the reappointment by President Kibaki of retired justice Aaron Ringera as the director of KACC.
The opposition and the KACC advisory board were opposed to the unilateral appointment and Mr Omogeni was to spell out their tough position on the matter during the media briefing when the State House call came through.
“I had occupied my seat ready to read the statement when the secretary brought me a note saying there was an urgent call I should receive before issuing the statement,” recalled the Nyamira Senator in an interview this week.
“When I retreated to my office, a voice told me, ‘we are calling you from State House and the president has seen a copy of what you want to read. You have been persistent in challenging a decision that has been made by the president,’” Mr Omogeni recounted the conversation. “To be honest I was shaken,” he added.
Mr Ringera’s first five-year contract as KACC director was expiring on the day of the dramatic press conference but the president had pre-empted the protests by reappointing him earlier on August 31.
The storm against the reappointment, however, proved so strong and Ringera as well as his deputy Fatuma Sichale resigned on September 30, but the development lifted the lid on the high-level interest in the post at Integrity Centre.
In recent interviews, the former anti-corruption czar as well as his successor PLO Lumumba spoke out about the backlash of going after the big fish particularly ministers and the country’s elusive push to nail high profile graft suspects.
Any attempt to prosecute high voltage files has invariably oiled the revolving door at Integrity Centre.
Lawyer Lumumba, who took over the leadership of the anti-corruption agency in July 2010, recalled stunning proceedings during a cabinet sub-committee when one of the ministers told him to his face that Kenya is not governed by angels.
In attendance at the forum reviewing proposed laws to implement the newly ratified constitution were nine ministers- who were also MPs at the time- under investigations by KACC.
Mr Lumumba quoted the minister telling him: “You are making laws as if we are angels in Kenya.” The anti-graft czar responded: “If you don’t want to change the law, allow me to leave.”
Mr Lumumba left the meeting in a huff. Subsequently in Parliament during passage of the Bill setting up the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in a night sitting, a last-minute amendment was made that saw Mr Lumumba and other directors shown the door.
But the senior counsel said he was not entirely caught by surprise.
“We had audience with the president to inform him that we’ve investigated his ministers. What will happen? Of course, do you make recommendations to the Attorney General who sat in cabinet and expect to survive?” Mr Lumumba recounted.
Like his successor, Mr Ringera believes he had made enemies by going after perceived sacred cows.
“In the course of my work as director, we submitted many files to the DPP recommending prosecution of cabinet ministers and high ranking state officials,” he said.
“I left with my head high because I believe I was pushed out for political reasons not performance. There were many obstacles,” recalled the former solicitor general.
One such obstacle, Mr Ringera recollected, was a curious case where a high-profile corruption case was forced to be heard in camera for reasons he found unsatisfactory.
“The reason given was that the cases involved state security but surprise of surprises, it is not the state that applied for the matter to be heard in camera. It is the judge himself who in his wisdom decided the matter involves state security. Don’t ask me for a name for I won’t give you,” he said.
M Ringera also believes his ouster was influenced by divisions that rocked the grand coalition government of President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
“The grand coalition government was divided in the middle in so far as the fight against graft was concerned. The director was regarded by one wing as a great enemy who must be gotten rid of by all means necessary,” he argued.
But Mr Ringera was no stranger to controversy, having overseen a purge of corrupt judicial officials immediately after President Kibaki’s Narc administration had ended Kanu’s 40-year reign in the 2002 elections.
Some 23 judges out of 54 were implicated as well as 284 magistrates, a situation Mr Ringera said surprised Chief Justice Evan Gicheru.
“Half the High Court and Court of Appeal judges were implicated, that is why some people called it radical surgery. The CJ felt overwhelmed with the findings. He thought the judiciary would crumble,” Mr Ringera said.
“It was the most difficult assignment in my career as a lawyer and judge because the assignment required investigation into the conduct of my own colleagues. Some who were even senior to me. I was a High Court judge at the time,” he recounted adding he doesn’t regret the mission except for the leaking of the dossier.
“One thing I regret about it was the fact that our findings were publicised before judges had been given an opportunity to explain themselves. I have said before and repeat that it is not I Aaron Ringera who leaked the report. Only two people had copies of the report, Ringera and the CJ. When I asked the CJ whether the leaking came from his office, he also denied. The CJ has since died. We may never know the truth,” Mr Ringera went on.
Pressed whether he thought any of the members of his team could have leaked the dossier, Mr Ringera replied:
“I do not suspect any member of my team to have leaked the report. I have no evidence who leaked it. If you go the route of speculation, if Ringera didn’t, if the CJ didn’t, then the government press where it was printed leaked. But I can’t say they did without evidence.”
Recently, the executive led by President Ruto launched a scathing attack against the judiciary, explicitly branding it as corrupt and causing a protracted standoff with the institution led by Chief Justice Martha Koome.
So what lessons are there to learn from previous attempts to clean up the judiciary?
“One, corruption and his father the devil will not exit planet earth till kingdom come. Two, judges are human beings, some of them possess more greed than others. Given an opportunity and greed, graft is an inevitable consequence unless a judge or a magistrate calculates the chances of exposure are high and if exposed they’ll be punished.
"This because corruption is not a crime of passion, but a crime of calculated gain. So people calculate mentally, will I be able to get away with it?” Mr Ringera argued.
After 2022 general election, the office of director of public prosecution embarked on a spree of withdrawal of high-profile cases in court which raised eyebrows.
“It is unfortunate. It is unexpected an independent office to play that kind of music. Their own prosecution guidelines require that before a decision to charge is taken, the DPP must be satisfied that evidence is sufficient,” said the retired judge.
“I consistently championed for the anti-corruption commission to be granted prosecutorial powers in addition to investigating. EACC should be given powers which are already there anyway but just require operationalisation.”
