Civil Society Organizations Warns Against ‘Corruption Fatigue,’ Hails Judicial Breakthroughs
NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 24 – The Kenya Devolution Civil Society Working Group (KD-CSO WG) an alarm on the deteriorating state of devolution and the systemic failures that are eroding public trust and normalizing corruption in Kenya.
While addressing the media in Nairobi (KD-CSO WG) highlighted that fifteen years after the promulgation of the Constitution, the promise of accountable decentralized governance is being betrayed.
“While leaders gathered at the recent Devolution Conference made lofty commitments, the lived reality for millions of Kenyans is one of crumbling healthcare services, persistent water scarcity and abandoned projects due to rampant graft and fiscal mismanagement”, they said.
They expressed frustration over distressing emerging issue is the role of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in entrenching a culture of impunity.
“We note with profound concern the inordinate and unexplained delays in prosecuting high-profile corruption cases involving the misappropriation of county resources more alarming is the trend of the ODPP dropping such cases often under questionable circumstances”.
They noted that failure to robustly prosecute sends a dangerous message that theft of public funds carries no consequence emboldens corrupt actors and directly contributes to the glorification of ill-gotten wealth in our society.
“When individuals who should be facing jail time are instead celebrated in public life, corruption becomes normalized, The ODPP must move beyond rhetoric and demonstrate its commitment to justice through swift, transparent, and conclusive prosecutions every dropped case is a betrayal of the Kenyan people and a nail in the coffin of devolution”.
Consequently they applauded Judicial reinforcement of accountability with Two Landmark rulings that serve to protect the foundations of devolution.
“We strongly support the High Court ruling that has delivered a “shocker for governors on procurement This ruling rightly affirms that Governors, as Chief Executives of their counties, bear the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that procurement laws are strictly followed”.
Additionally, they pointed out that Corruption in public procurement remains the single biggest threat to devolution with over 70% of county budgets spent through procurement, the current opaque and manual system is a gateway for the massive leakage of public funds.
“We strongly support the full implementation of a centralized, transparent, and end-to-end E-Procurement system across all 47 counties”,they added.
We are therefore calling for an immediate and formal partnership between the Kenya Devolution Civil Society Working Group, the National Treasury, and the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) to develop and effectively roll out a mandatory E-Procurement system this system must provide real-time public access to all tenders, awards, contracts and payment schedules to ensure accountability at every step, directly supporting the judicial demand for compliance”.
KD-CSO WG further raised concern on the tokenistic nature of public participation where citizens are too often invited into processes only to rubberstamp decisions already made elsewhere, with little to no opportunity to influence budgets, policies, or development priorities.
“This practice erodes trust and leaves communities feeling excluded, powerless, and disregarded in both county and national governance We reiterate that public participation is not a procedural formality but a constitutional right and a cornerstone of devolution”.
Kenya must urgently enact the Public Participation Bill, 2025, which will Establish clear principles and minimum standards for citizen engagement Guarantee that citizens are involved from the beginning to the end of decision-making processes and Ensure transparency, inclusivity and accountability in governance.
“Without this law, participation will remain hollow, and devolution’s promise will continue to ring empty”.
Further, they demand the ODPP to Immediately fast-track all corruption cases related to county resources, publicly explain any decision to drop a case and establish a special unit to handle devolution-related graft.
The National Government and PPRA to Partner with CSOs to finalize and mandatorily roll out a transparent E-Procurement system across all counties within a defined timeline.
Governors and County Governments to Heed the High Court ruling and take direct, personal responsibility for procurement integrity by ensuring full legal compliance, National Government to Respect the High Court ruling on NG-CDF and commit to a genuine transfer of all devolved functions and resources.
“As CSOs, we will intensify our monitoring, advocacy, and strategic litigation to ensure that devolution delivers on its promise we will develop and publish scorecards to track the performance of all institutions”.
“Devolution must be lived, not just promised The people of Kenya deserve better”.
