The former Primate of Kenya, Bishop Eliud Wabukala, has been sworn in
as the new chair of the country’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission
(EACC). The judiciary’s chief registrar, Anne Amadi, conducted the brief swearing-in ceremony in Kenya’s Supreme Court, witnessed by Chief Justice David Maraga and Attorney Githu Muigai.
The EACC exists to “combat and prevent corruption and economic crime in Kenya through law enforcement, preventive measures, public education and promotion of standards and practices of integrity, ethics and anti-corruption.”
“Fighting corruption should not be left entirely to the commission,” Dr Wabukala said after he was sworn in. “Cabinet secretaries, principal secretaries, executive officers, governors and accounting officers must take responsibility and should also be held answerable for what happens in their ministries, departments and counties.”
Chief Justice Maraga said that Dr Wabukala was approaching the new post with “confidence”, saying: “You are up to the challenge and am sure you will discharge your duties. Corruption in this country has reached endemic proportions. This dragon must be dealt with otherwise the economy will be ruined.”
Dr Wabukala was nominated for the position by Kenya’s President, Uhuru Kenyatta, in December after the country’s Public Service Commission interviewed a short-list of six candidates in November.
His appointment was approved by the country’s Parliament last week. He succeeds former chair Peter Kinisu, who was forced to stand down after companies he was involved with became the subject of EACC investigations.
When he retired from his role as Archbishop of Kenya in June last year, Dr Wabukala received warm plaudits for his fight against corruption as chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Campaign Steering Committee.