President William Ruto has said he will propose amendments to the Evidence Act, the Criminal Procedure Code to expedite the investigation and prosecution of corruption and economic crimes cases and provide for their conclusion within 6 months.
In a press briefing, the Head of State said he will also be proposing amendments to the Witness Protection Act to overhaul the statutory and institutional framework to protect and incentivise whistle-blowers.
This he says will make it easier and safer for citizens to come forward and report corruption as well as other criminal activities.
“I will be proposing amendments to the Evidence Act, the Criminal Procedure Code, among other necessary legislative amendments to all statutes relating to corruption, to expedite the investigation and prosecution of corruption and economic crimes cases and provide for their conclusion within 6 months.” He said.
Within 90 days, Ruto promised that he shall propose amendments to the Public Finance Management Act and the Public Procurement and Disposal Act to overhaul the institutional and operational framework of public procurement which has been identified as the epicentre of corruption, conflict of interest and abuse of office in the public sector, with a view to deploying a digital infrastructure within 6 months.
These measures he said are aimed at providing an open and transparent public procurement platform which gives open, real-time and end-to-end public visibility of public procurement from advertisement to award of contract.
Similarly, President Ruto noted that he has already engaged with the parliamentary leadership and
asked Parliament to expeditiously pass the Conflict of
Interests Bill with the explicit caveat that he shall veto
any Bill enacted if it does not establish a high bar with
respect to accountability, integrity and anti-corruption.
“I will make full use of the power given to me under
Article 115 of the Constitution to make sure that the Bill
meets the appropriate standards set out in the original
bill.” He noted.
