My Government Shall Not Entertain Any Corrupt Officers- President Ruto
President William Ruto has put a notice to all government officers both at the national and county levels that his government will not hesitate to take serious actions against any officer who will be engaged in corruption.
Speaking during the launch of the Devolution Conference in Eldoret Sports Club in Uasin Gishu County, President Ruto sent a strong warning to government officers that his government will not entertain any corruption, wastage and pilferage of resources meant to improve lives of Kenyans.
He said for some time government officers in the Counties have squandered and wasted resources through corrupt deals, something that he said his government will not put up with.
“We must use this 8th Devolution Conference to speak emphatically to an issue that must disturb all of us, as far as I can tell, it was never the spirit or intent of the people of Kenya to devolve corruption, mismanagement and malpractices to the counties,” said President Ruto.
“Many counties have evolved into notorious epicentres of wanton looting, with everyone, from governors and county executive to junior officers implicated in a wild free-for-all at the expense of essential service delivery,” he added.
President Ruto said his government will work closely with County governments to ensure that Kenyans receive required services.
He said his government has already put in place plans of cooperation with the County governments especially in the health sector urging Governors to embrace the collaboration that is aimed at serving Kenyans in the best way.
On the transfer of County functions from the National government, President Ruto said his government is committed to fully operationalization of the devolved units revealing that plans have been put in place to ensure that all the county functions that had remained at the National level are devolved in a period of 60 days.
He said his government does not have any intentions of sticking to functions that are supposed to be run by County governments as stipulated by the constitutions assuring County governments of fruitful collaborations and support by among others ensuring timely disbursement of resources meant for counties to enable them plan and deliver their mandates.
“Delays in disbursing allocations to counties have tremendous negative effects which cascade all the way to the households at the grassroots, leading to poor outcomes in many sectors, there is no excuse for this, and we simply have to do better,” explained President Ruto.
He noted that for the first time since the advent of devolution, the inaugural disbursement of equitable allocation to counties under his administration was implemented in full and on time.
“We vowed to ensure that shareable revenue is transferred to counties in a timely and predictable manner, and in accordance with the law,” emphasized the President.
He said to ensure Counties discharge their mandates without financial challenges, President Ruto affirmed that his administration will strictly follow funds disbursement schedules as stipulated by law.
On calls by the County Assemblies to attain their autonomy, President Ruto promised to work closely with the Senate to address the issue promising to also have an engagement with Members of the County Assemblies on their salaries and allowances.
On the Public Debt, the head of state said his government will not engage in borrowing left, right and centre adding that there is already a framework in place that will ensure the Country grows its savings for future use.
He said his government will not at any time subsidize consumption insisting that only production will be subsidized in order to reduce the cost of importation.
On creation of jobs, the Commander in Chief appealed to the County Bosses to work closely with his administration to establish entities that will create jobs for Kenyan youth while at the same time addressing the issue of over dependence on foreign nations for goods that can be locally manufactured in Kenya.
At the event, President Ruto witnessed the launch of the Devolution Book that details achievements of Counties and Joint County Bankable Investment Handbook that details investment opportunities in the Counties across the County.
Courtesy Parliament of Kenya
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