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{
    "id": 974454,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/974454/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 341,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orengo",
    "speaker_title": "The Senate Minority Leader",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 129,
        "legal_name": "Aggrey James Orengo",
        "slug": "james-orengo"
    },
    "content": "one of the people who believe that prosecutions are never really effective in dealing with corruption as a vice or as a basis for recovering wealth that probably had been corruptly acquired. As I have stated so many times before, dealing with corruption begins with how the Government is organized, so that all the loopholes for opportunities to commit these acts of corruption with impunity are closed. This is because prosecutions take time. The courts are sometimes overloaded and the manner in which prosecutions are conducted requires resources, professional people, and evidence collection. Simply putting it, prosecution is not always very easy and yet this vice must be dealt with. I congratulate Sen. Farhiya. She has been so persistent on this issue. I think that she has done a wonderful job in trying to bring this Bill to the Floor of the House. I think this procedure she has set out, especially in dealing with unexplained wealth and how to seek to have the person explain---- Probably if the person elects not to be prosecuted and uses the opportunities here to deal with that kind of conduct. However, if you look at the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, in order to create harmony in the law, certain provisions of the Act probably need to be repealed or lifted from that legislation and brought here. This is because this legislation is a better articulated procedure for dealing with unexplained assets. That explains the difficulty the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has had in dealing with acquisition of unexplained assets. Therefore, at a later stage in consultation with Sen. Farhiya, we will juxtapose this legislation and if necessary, lift those sections in that Act and make them part of this Statute. For that matter, it would then put the question of ethics entirely in the hands of the EACC as opposed to dealing with investigations that lead to prosecutions. If we have too many bodies dealing with investigations and prosecutions, it creates conflict and competition within the sector and that sometimes ends up in nil prosecutions or investigations that are botched up. Having said that, if you look at this country called Kenya and look at the acquisitions that those in public life have acquired over time; even people who are in corporate business or hold high offices in the corporate world do not acquire wealth with the speed with which those in public office are able to. We have living examples in Parliament. If there was a proper lifestyle audit beginning with the leaders in Parliament and high-ranking officials in the Executive, most of them would not be able to explain the source of their wealth. In fact, at one time in Ghana - and I do not think that is something to emulate or follow - during the government of Lieutenant Rawlings when he took over power in Ghana, he gave opportunity to those public officers who had acquired wealth to explain and begin on the basis that that person was earning a salary and saving the entire salary, he was not buying food, not paying rent and that all the money was just going to acquisition of assets or having deposits in banks; and so on and so forth. A lot of them were not able to explain. The unfortunate thing in Ghana is that some of them were taken to the beach and shot dead. I do not think that is something we want to emulate. If this Bill becomes law The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}