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{
    "id": 926673,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/926673/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 370,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Baringo North, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. William Cheptumo",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 50,
        "legal_name": "William Cheptumo Kipkiror",
        "slug": "william-kipkiror"
    },
    "content": "22nd November 2018 and thereafter committed to the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs to report back to the House. We concluded and tabled our Report on the Floor of the House. The policy was developed in response to a directive by the President during the second State of the Nation Address in Parliament in 2015 in which he denounced corruption and directed that the office of the Attorney-General develops a legislative and policy framework for fighting corruption to ensure success. As I address this House, we know the situation the country is currently in with regard to the issue of corruption. The Government continues to demonstrate goodwill to fight corruption. We have institutions that are mandated to deal with the issue of corruption. Over the years, we have never had a policy that guides the country in developing appropriate pieces of legislation that can help and strengthen the institutions to fight corruption. So when the Head of State directed that a policy be developed by the Attorney-General, it was done and the policy was brought to the House. The Report before the House is so elaborate on legislative interventions we need to put in place so that we are able to fight corruption in a more effective manner. We have a number of institutions that fight corruption and other agencies which play a critical role, but there is no uniformity. So you find that in terms of operations, there is conflict among the institutions. The National Ethics and Anti-Corruption Policy, therefore, intends to provide a comprehensive framework for the design and development of an effective legal and institutional framework for fighting corruption and promoting ethics and integrity in our country. It is not just about fighting corruption, but about enhancing integrity in our people. If we enhance integrity in the lives of our young people and leaders, it has the impact of reducing the chances of Kenyans participating in corruption. So, it ensures that we have mechanisms that can enhance and build strong integrity and value systems for our children as they grow. The Committee considered the policy in about four sittings. The Attorney-General and the CEO of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) appeared before our Committee. We discussed the policy, the experience and the practicability of those issues because they are the ones who developed the policy and brought it before this House. The Report we have is well coordinated in terms of discussion. The public was also involved in giving their input and we got a lot of support from the various stakeholders. When considering the Sessional Paper and making recommendations, the Committee was guided by existing procedure and modalities of operations of the National Assembly as derived from the Constitution of our Republic, Acts of Parliament, National Assembly Standing Orders, conventions, practices and rulings of the Speaker. Because of time, I may not wish to go through the entire Report. I just want to go to specific areas which I feel are critical in enabling this House understand the essence of this policy. In developing the policy, the Committee was informed by the need for a systematic ethics, integrity and anti-corruption policy that responds to the complexities of corruption. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, corruption is a very complex vice which comes in very many forms. Depending on the form in which it comes, it requires to be handled in a different manner. So, we should look at the complexity of this vice of corruption. Ethics becomes critical in all this. So, this is a dynamic nature of corruption which is complicated by globalisation, technological advancement and prevailing trends in transnational crime. The whole issue about corruption is becoming complex. People design various forms of engaging in corruption activities. We must also move with the changes and deal with this situation as we move forward. This policy seeks to enhance the existing legal framework for preventing and fighting corruption. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}