Attorney General conference on corruption!!!!!!ADDRESS BY HON. PROF. GITHU MUIGAI, EGH, SC, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA DURING THE LAUNCH OF THE NATIONAL ETHICS AND CORRUPTION SURVEY REPORT 2015, KICC, AMPHITHEATRE ON THE 15TH MARCH 2016 Ladies and Gentlemen; I am very pleased to be here with you today as we launch the National Ethics and Corruption Survey Report 2015. Allow me to first congratulate the newly appointed Commissioners of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission on their appointment. I must add that it is not going to be an easy job as they may already have found out. However, with unity of purpose, widely held consultation and continuous support from all the stakeholders, it is our hope that they will successfully spearhead the war on corruption and register positive results. Ladies and Gentlemen We are all aware of the magnitude of the war against corruption and unethical conduct that we are fighting today. Constant reports by the mainstream media have portrayed the alarming corruption situation in Kenya. Whereas some of these reports are a result of the crumbling of the corruption house of cards following decades of unrestrained existence, we must admit that some of these reports are not entirely reflective of the true position. Indeed, some reports are fueled by partisan agenda with intention of negatively influencing the national anti-corruption narrative. From where I sit, I can confirm that the country has made significant progress and achievements in its anti-corruption agenda. The sheer number of concluded investigations in the last one year, and the number of persons arraigned in court to answer to various charges of corruption and economic crime is unprecedented. Never in the history of this country has the record number and profile of corruption cases before the courts been achieved, all proceeding concurrently and regularly towards conclusion. These include cases involving senior public officials from both the National and County Governments as well as private individuals complicit in corruption incidences. We recall that Cabinet and Principal Secretaries stepped aside from their portfolios to pave way for effective investigations devoid of interference or influence. Today, preservation and recovery of corruption proceeds is prompt and unrelenting. Corruption investigation and tax enforcement measures are simultaneously pursued with each reinforcing the other for greater effectiveness. This is a first in Kenyas history. In this regard, I want to appreciate the efforts made by law enforcement agencies, especially under the Multi-Agency framework whose collective resolve in coordinating investigation, prosecution and asset recovery interventions have resulted in these inspiring result that can only get better with time. More importantly, I want to recognize the bold leadership of H.E. The President who has not only taken the bull by the horns through consistent and unrelenting public support to the anti-corruption objective, but also provided the political leadership to nurture every single step of progress achieved thus far. Of all previous regime efforts, this is by far the most audacious affront against corruption we have witnessed. Ladies and Gentlemen I am informed that the Report being launched today is a culmination of methodical and scientific research by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission. The report provides a platform for institutions at the national and county levels to come up with systems and processes to detect and prevent corruption. The report further identifies opportunities for the government at both levels to actively engage with the business community and the general public in the fight against corruption. The fight against corruption cannot be won without an effective legal, institutional and policy framework. My office has been on the forefront in ensuring efficiency and effectiveness with respect to institutions and a facilitative environment of necessary laws and policies to strengthen anti-corruption initiatives. In this regard, the Taskforce on the Review of the Legal, Policy, and Institutional Framework for Fighting Corruption recently concluded a self-reflection as agencies tasked with fighting corruption. We deliberately and conscientiously reviewed what ails our anti-corruption objectives. We analysed our weaknesses and profiled our strengths, resulting in the adoption of strategies that will further enhance the achievements elucidated above. I am happy to inform you that implementation of the Report is now in full gear. Some of these initial interventions including legal, administrative, procedural and human resource changes have already began to bear fruit. I am hopeful that the full implementation of the far reaching strategies proposed will have a major positive impact on mainstreaming accountability and ethical behavior in this country. We will also continue to engage stakeholders including the private sector so as to harness anti-corruption efforts from all concerned. On this note, Im pleased to inform you that the Bribery Bill that was initiated by the Private sector has been approved by the Cabinet Sub-Committee on Legislation and will be tabled in the National Assembly for consideration in the coming days. The Bill outlines the role of private sector in curtailing the supply side of corruption, providing an opportunity to enrich Kenyas anti-corruption legal regime with best practices and provisions drawn from various regional and international instruments which Kenya is a party to. Ladies and Gentlemen; Perhaps one of the reasons why corruption seems to be easily accepted in Kenya today, is a result of discarding age-old customs and values instilled in the society by our forefathers. Those values were responsible for shaping people into individuals of integrity who abhorred all that was wrong, unjust, and unfair. Today, we tolerate those who we suspect of being beneficiaries of illicit gain. We invite them to our celebrations and recognize their achievements. We admire their ability to manipulate systems and circumvent process. We consider them shrewd, outgoing, and gifted. We have normalized the abnormal. Consequently, our anti-corruption prevention interventions have deliberately sought to nurture and reignite the social fabric of our African culture that revered values and integrity. We have recognized the critical need to have our fundamental grounding and national soul as a country re-energized towards shared values and ethics such as integrity, fairness, honesty, excellence, respect and discipline. We urge you as stakeholders in the public and private sector, non-state actors, diplomatic corps, religious organizations, media among others, to comprise the collective effort to return us to the path of righteousness. Your presence and support here today demonstrates your heeding of the national call to action to join in true partnership with the government to eradicate this vice. I invite you to remain unwavering in this resolve. To stand firm with the government and support the joint interventions developed in this regard. Ladies and Gentlemen As I conclude, I wish to reiterate that the war against corruption requires concerted effort from all stakeholders. The Ethics and Anti- Corruption Commission cannot fight corruption in isolation. We therefore strongly encourage the government at all levels, business, civil society, the media, the academia and all stakeholder present here today to study, analyse and use the data provided in this Survey Report. The report is indispensable in economic and social policy analysis, development planning, programme management and decision making at all levels of governance and will go a long way in supporting the fight against corruption. With those few remarks I now officially launch the National Ethics and Corruption Survey Report 2015. Thank you