Senator Edwin Sifuna has defended senators against accusations by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) that they weakened the fight against corruption by mutilating a bill on conflict of interest. Contrary to claims by the agency, he said, all the Senate did was to consolidate various laws on the fight against corruption into one.
The EACC had last week accused the Senate of weakening the Conflict of Interest Bill, 2024 by introducing amendments that diluted its ability to fight corruption.The proposed law seeks to prevent corruption, favouritism and bias in the public service by ensuring no public or State officers or their relatives are allowed to conduct business with the government.
The EACC accused senators of amending the bill to allow top State officials, including Cabinet secretaries, principal secretaries, senators, MPs, governors and other top officials together with their spouses, children and siblings to trade with the government, including institutions headed by the officials, without any sanctions.
But in a rejoinder, Sifuna maintained that current laws on conflict of interest are covered by multiple Acts and that senators streamlined the laws into a single one.
