Jubilee MPs were yesterday engaged in blame game with Cord leader Raila Odinga over runaway corruption in the country, with the legislators accusing the former premier of hypocrisy and double standards.
The MPs sensationally claimed that the Opposition chief was receiving monthly stipend from ODM-governed counties. Led by National Assembly Leader of Majority Aden Duale, the MPs claimed Raila’s domestic and foreign trips are funded by county governments led by ODM governors.
Duale said he was in possession of vouchers confirming that “during Raila’s tour of Wajir and Garissa counties, the governors paid for the choppers” that ferried him and his entourage. They also questioned Raila’s silence on audit reports highlighting massive theft in the counties.
They cited Kilifi, where they criticised the Cord leader for defending Governor Amason Kingi on graft allegations. But in Mombasa, Raila challenged President Uhuru Kenyatta to suspend Transport Cabinet secretary James Macharia and Health Principal secretary Nicholas Muraguri over alleged loss of cash in the Health ministry. The cash was reportedly lost when Macharia headed the docket.
The former premier accused the government of shielding corruption suspects through buck-passing. “All we see is the President and his deputy spending public money on spin initiatives meant to show that the counties are more corrupt.
The National government is using more public funds to cleanse suspects,” said Raila. He said Kenyans were “disgusted” to see senior officials try to sacrifice the internal auditor Bernard Muchere over the leaked audit report that showed the Health ministry had lost more than Sh5 billion in scandalous dealings.
According to Raila, Muchere has maintained that the ministry cannot account for the cash despite spirited attempts by the National government to downplay the scandal “by reducing the amount lost and whitewashing the suspects” while investigations are underway.
“The time has come for the President to come clean and tell us whether he is going to do more to fight corruption or whether what we have seen is the most we shall get,” he said.
At the same time, Raila defended Kingi over the theft of more than Sh1 billion from the county’s bank accounts and said the governor will not resign over the loss of the funds because he was not the accounting officer.
But the Jubilee MPs, in a statement read by Duale at Parliament Buildings, said Raila was playing double standards in his alleged fight on graft. They alleged that Raila’s agenda in his abrupt trip to Kilifi was to defend the governor, who should be held accountable for lost public funds.
“Today, Raila spoke to the media about the ugly revelations of devolved corruption in counties managed by his political organisation. In particular, while defending Kingi, he said he does not want to hear anything about preliminary audit reports because they are just queries...
The Afya audit report was also interim yet he is demanding action. What has changed?” read the statement in part. “This is the same governor who has been investigated for buying a Sh140 million house while his constituents are dying of hunger.
Raila on the other hand closes his eye and joins Kingi to distribute relief food.” The Mps also hit out some media outlets for their silence on reports of immense corruption in ODM-led counties.
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