Was Devolution an Evolution of Corruption?

When devolution came, many people were happy. There were jubilations all over. People broke into a dance and singing all night long to usher in what they termed as the new era after the promulgation of the then new constitution. That is when devolution was born.

The creation of the devolved system of governance was meant to bring the services as well as resources closer to the people. Those who introduced devolution, the learned friends and acting on behalf of millions other Kenyans, thought that it was the only form of governance that would decentralize power from “Nairobi” which was considered as the “main seat of power” and make people on the ground feel that power.

Read: The True State of Kenya’s Economy: The Numbers.

Kenya has 47 Counties, 47 County Governors, 47 elected Senators, 47 County Assemblies and thousands of Members of County Assemblies famously known as MCAs. All these are the elective positions that came into being with the coming of the New Constitution. The creation of these elective positions was aimed at enhancing service delivery to the people so as to better them economically.

Four years down the line questions still linker in the minds of many Kenyans.

• Has devolution delivered as it was expected?
• Has the lives of the common man in the villages and in the streets changed in any way as a result of the coming of the devolution?
• How helpful has devolution been in making sure that the resources are utilized by the people and for the people?
• Do people still have the faith and confidence in devolution?

Ask the people and the answer is NO in capital letters.

The reality is that, although devolution was meant to enhance the lives of the people of Kenya, it was an ultimate evolution of corruption. With the coming of devolution, it is like corruption was equally distributed across the country among the 47 Counties. Questions still linker:

• Are the millions sent to the County Government from the National Government checked and regulated?
• Who has the responsibility to ensure that the funds meant for devolution are well used and utilized?
• Are County Assemblies capable and moral enough to make sure that the money is and will be well used?

Ask the people and the answer will be NO in capital letters.

Do you still remember a certain County that spend 109 thousand shillings to purchase a wheelbarrow? Do you still remember what the man in charge said about them? He said, “These are special kind of wheelbarrows. They are casino-genic.” Whatever that means but the County looked at a viable project that would benefit the people of that County and saw that buying wheelbarrows was the best form of investment ever.

And do you still remember the County Government that spent more than one million shillings to open a Facebook page for the County? Do you know how much it costs to open a Facebook page? Opening a Facebook page costs nothing. Zero. And if you are surprised with that County, what about this one that constructed a hospital gate using millions and yet the hospital itself was in a pathetic condition? The County Government maybe thought that making a hospital gate more attractive than equipping the hospital will give those who seek medical attention at the facility an iota of hope of seeing the following day.

Read: The Cost of Corruption in Kenya.

Did you hear of the Members of a County Assembly who went to Israel to swim? Yes. They went to Jerusalem to see where Christ was born and even some went with bottles so as to come back ‘holy waters’ from the ‘holy place’. And what about those who went to Congo for an athletic benchmark?

All these incidences point out the misplaced priorities of County Government. A lot of money has been misappropriated and nobody has been brought to book for that. Recently, British Broadcasting Corporation reported that in Kenya, ‘even the fastest runner cannot outrun corruption.’ It is high time all Counties are brought into perspective on how they are spending public money. The lives of the people on the ground have not changed at all. The only thing that has changed is the corruption has been moved from ‘Nairobi’ and taken closer to the people, tribalism and nepotism is now more pronounced than ever and the lives of the people is becoming miserable by day.

Was devolution an evolution of corruption?

Article by Juma Fred.