This archive report was first published on 7 September 2019.
Published on September 7, 2019, the anti-graft war in Kenya appears to be losing steam as high-profile corruption cases stall in the courts.
When the operation was renewed last year, spearheaded by Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji and head of the Directorate of Criminal Investigation George Kinoti, hordes of high-ranking individuals in government were arrested and arraigned in court.
However, more than a year later, progress has not been as fast as expected. The Judiciary has been slow in dispensing of matters, indicating a weak link in the crusade.
Chief Justice David Maraga has issued a decree to the courts to speed up adjudication of corruption cases, but this has not come to pass. Most of the cases are stuck in the courts, with delays posing a serious threat to the war.
Questions have also risen about the quality of evidence used to charge the individuals, with some evidence presented before the court unable to sustain prosecution.
There are allegations of collusion between investigators, prosecutors, and judicial officers to kill some cases, with weak evidence presented deliberately to ensure the charges flop.
We urge Chief Justice Maraga to conduct an audit of the pending cases and give directions to conclude them. The DCI and DPP should also intensify the drive to rein in the corrupt and conduct thorough investigations to secure convictions.
