• Siaya Governor says he should be probed while still in office if EACCbeleives he is a thief.
Image: LAMECK BARAZA
Siaya Governor Cornel Rasanga has dared EACC investigators to arrest him if they feel he is corrupt.
Rasanga said the ongoing corruption investigations in Siaya were targeting individuals without factual evidence.
“If you think that Rasanga is corrupt, come and arrest me while am still in office. Don’t wait 10 years down the line to follow me up,” Rasanga told EACC officials.
The governor spoke during the launch of a one-week anti-corruption campaign in Siaya town.
Rasanga said corruption claims targeting him will not materialise because he has experience on how to evade such dragnets.
“When I was a senior procurement officer, the office of the DPP used to consult me on how to handle issues of procurement flaws,” he said.
He said corruption investigations in Siaya will drag for a long time.
“Since I was elected in 2013, no prosecution on corruption cases has been done despite EACC officials severally pitching in the county under the guise of investigating graft claims."
Rasanga said frequent transfer and replacement of EACC investigators was a stumbling block in arriving at concrete evidence because the new officials are often compromised due to their scant information.
He asked EACC to allocate 80 per cent of its budget towards prevention measures and 20 per cent to corruption cases for prosecution.
Rasanga said EACC officials have deliberately avoided visit his office and home because "they have an informed opinion that I am thief."
“They don't want to come to my office but peddle rumours that they want to storm my home. Let them come now because I'm not corrupt,” he said.
Rasanga also took a swipe at the county assembly oversight committees, saying their investigations are not based on factual evidence but witch-hunting.
EACC vice chairperson Sophia Lepuchirit told executives and chief officers to take the workshop seriously because they were prone to victimisation.
“You will be the people on the firing line as far as corruption cases are concerned,” Lepuchirit said.
She said the commission has the capacity to deal with cases in all sectors. "The war on graft will be won despite how long it will takes," she said.
EACC director of preventive services Vincent Okong’o said the commission has made efforts towards fighting graft with many cases already forwarded to the DPP for prosecution.
He asked the public to be patient.
“Some cases are complex and need enough time and facts before they are dealt with decisively," he said.
Okong’o a Sh2 billion road project in Siaya was under EACC “radar” with claims of pilferage being probed.
The workshop was attended by county secretary Dave Anyona, county commissioner Michael ole Tialal and top national government and county officials.
Edited by P. Obuya