Kenya is one amazing country and in the last few weeks it has not disappointed, not one bit. Those who’ve got their hands on John Githongo’s dossier are not doubt amazed by how rotten the corridors of power are. If you believe all that John tells us (and I haven’t any reason not to), then you’ll know that, like a fish, the rot starts at the head. Apparently, on several occasions, the president was told about the fishy goings on in some of his ministers’ dockets. He didn’t do a thing, despite clear evidence that his Ethics PS insisted he had on the matter.
Personally, I don’t believe this was just part of Kibaki’s laid back style of leadership, but in fact a personal
effort at defrauding the country he swore to protect. Many times in the dossier, Kiraitu Murungi talks about the funds being needed to fund Narc activities. Dr. Murungaru is on record saying that the President himself personally sanctioned the 4.1Billion shilling (57M dollars) deal to buy naval ships from Spain. A deal that was part of the many struck with the non-existent entity, Anglo-Leasing. All those Githongo’s dossier points at are what the press refer to as Kibaki’s political pillars.It was his Vice President that made a statement in parliament claiming that Anglo-Leasing was a clean and reputable company. Only to later claim that he read was a statement written by technocrats in his ministry. It had been revealed that the cost of the project had been inflated almost 3 and a half times, and awarded to a company that did not in fact exist. Just showing how little respect politicians have for Kenyans’ intellect. The same man, according to John’s dossier, who set up a meeting at his residence to ask John, why he was investigating the issue yet the monies paid out had been returned to the Treasury.
That said, perhaps the understatement of the century must have been from one Minister for Justice, Kiraitu Murungi. At the height of the revelations about the dubious companies making deals with the govt., he chose to refer to the whole saga as a ‘scandal that never was !’ questioning the reasons for the press giving the issue such extensive coverage. It is the same ‘scandal that never was’ that led to his dismissal from the cabinet, albeit belated.
Another crack head must be one David Mwiraria. Questioned on why he signed a document that would have seen Kenya lose billions of shillings to the ghost company, he proceeded to blame it on his Permanent Secretary, who had handed the said document to him to sign and he went ahead and did just that, without reading it! Yeah, he expects us to swallow that pile of utter garbage. And since he’d explained away the problem so eloquently, he didn’t see any reason to resign !! He must think we are a mob of illiterate, naïve idiots, if we are to believe a word he said. He’s no longer the Minister for Finance, but I’ll not smile until I see his short, thieving self behind bars.
Back to the Head of State. Now that things have come full circle, I don’t believe there is an ounce of sincerity in anything he does. It was only after lots of sustained pressure that he got rid of 3 ministers, although his VP is still in place, probably hoping to read another statement in parliament whose accuracy he’d careless about.I can’t wait for 2007. Certainly a red card for this govt.
Next time, more on the tapes that John Githongo made of Cabinet ministers behaving badly.
Peace,
The WebDoc.
