Lead in graft war, Lusaka now tells county officials

Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka has issued a firm directive to senior county officials to take the front line in the war on corruption, declaring a zero-tolerance approach towards graft and unethical conduct in his administration.

While opening an integrity and anti-corruption sensitisation workshop in Kisumu, he challenged public officials to internalise and uphold Chapter Six of the constitution in their daily operations.

The training, organised by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), brought together county executive committee members, chief officers and officials from the county public service board.

“This engagement comes at a time when citizens are demanding more transparency and accountability from those entrusted with public resources,” Lusaka said.

“If we expect to earn their trust, the culture of integrity must start with us.”

The governor emphasised that ethical leadership is not optional, nor a one-off event, but a continuous personal commitment from every official.

He said practices such as favouritism, negligence and misuse of office will no longer be tolerated under his leadership.

“The fight against corruption is not just a policy; it is a personal responsibility. It’s not about compliance for show, it’s about doing the right thing consistently,” he told participants.

EACC Western region manager Eric Ngumbi highlighted common corruption loopholes within county governments. These include bribery, conflict of interest, questionable payments and deliberate weakening of legal cases to protect land grabbers.

He said in some cases, officials collude with private individuals to illegally sell public land and later orchestrate sham legal proceedings to derail justice.

Ngumbi also flagged the rampant abuse of end-of-financial-year budgets, where fictitious payments are rushed through under the guise of clearing pending bills.

He further cautioned junior staff against collecting imprests on behalf of their seniors, terming it a breach of public finance management procedures.

“Imprests must be issued directly to the officer requesting them. Any other practice compromises accountability,” he said.

On claims that EACC selectively targets political leaders, Ngumbi dismissed the allegations, saying prosecutions have been carried out across the political divide.

“This is not a political war; it’s an integrity war,” he affirmed.

Governor Lusaka reiterated his personal commitment to ethical governance and urged other leaders to lead by example.

“The war on corruption doesn’t begin with EACC, it begins with each of us,” he said, adding that leadership without integrity is leadership without legitimacy.

He encouraged county leaders to make full use of the training, reflect on their roles as public servants, and become ambassadors of ethical governance in their departments.