Kenya Kwanza Manifesto: DP Ruto promises to end State capture

Mr. Ruto, the United Democratic Alliance party leader, said should they be successful in the August General Election, he will initiate the process of freeing the running of public affairs from conflict of interest within a month into office.

He said his government will complete the implementation of the 2010 Constitution, strengthen the rule of law, increase access to justice, ensure respect for human rights, while respecting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal number 16 which focuses on peace, justice, and strong institutions.

He outlined three ways of ending State capture.

• Establishing, within 30 days, a Quasi-Judicial public inquiry to establish the extent of cronyism and state capture in the nation and make recommendations.
• Implementing Section 93A of the Companies Act 2015 and its Regulations in order to make it easier for organisations doing business with the government to share information about their beneficial owners. This information will be publicly available
• Strengthening Mutual Legal Assistance arrangements with partner states with respect to sharing of information and repatriation of stolen assets.

Dr. Ruto also mentioned his plans to help in the implementation and operationalisation of Constitution of Kenya 2010 by: 

• Equipping the Attorney General's office with the resources and ability it needs to safeguard the public interest in court, in legislating, in negotiating international agreements, and in the signing of contracts. By doing so, the government will avoid needless litigation and costly fines

• Bolstering the financial and technical capabilities as well as the independence of all independent (Chapter 15) institutions to make sure they are capable of defending the national interest and the people's sovereignty

• Institutionalising human rights-based approaches to Counter-Terrorism (CT), including strengthening the Special CT Courts to ensure speedy and fair trials

• Strengthening the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) by establishing it in all counties 

• Ending the weaponisation and politicisation of the anti-corruption efforts by allowing the relevant institutions to freely exercise the independence given to them by the constitution