Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa claims that the Opposition died after last year's March 9 handshake between President Uhuru Kenyatta and Opposition leader Raila Odinga.
The Jubilee legislator told Bungoma-based West FM yesterday that Raila used to check the government but he longer points out at the ills facing it.
“The rain started beating us when Raila held the handshake and he has brainwashed the head of the state to an extent that he (Uhuru) has gone mute on fighting corruption cases. I opposed the handshake because since it happened nobody is making noise and checking the government,” Barasa said.
He blamed the rise of graft on lack of a strong opposition to check the government. "The Opposition is dead and buried" and nobody makes noise any more, the MP said.
“The former prime minister joined the government and decided to work with President Uhuru Kenyatta for the sake of peace but he lost his role as an opposition guru," the MP said.
Baraza called on Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to speed up the arrest of individuals mentioned in criminal cases.
“EACC and DCI officers should not be releasing investigations on people they are probing on economic crimes. They should work independently, not for the government. They will jeopardise their job and Kenyans should put pressure on them to conclude investigations within a set timeline."
Baraza reiterated that the government has manipulated the EACC by giving some of its powers to the DCI.
“The DCI should secretly carry out its investigations instead of posting it on social media, the only institution that has powers to investigate corruption cases under economic crimes is EACC. DCI was created under Police Act. They enforce the law through the Criminal Procedure Code,” the legislator said.
DCI officers, he said, cannot deal with corruption cases "because they are corrupt themselves and are always compromised".
