The Centre for Parliamentary Studies has this morning hosted the 2nd Annual Parliamentary Symposium under the theme “The Role of the Legislature in the Fight against Corruption".

While opening the forum, the Vice Chair of the Parliamentary Service Commission and Chair of the Center for Parliamentary Studies Board, Dr. Naomi Shaban, underscored the importance of the symposium, noting that Kenya needs a strategic approach on the fight against graft which has for several decades gnawed away Kenya's economic potential. She underpinned the fact that time had dawned for both the government and the private sector to embrace transparency and integrity for robust economic growth and development.

“Corruption remains an obstacle despite a comprehensive legal framework. The civil society plays a major role in keeping us in check through Transparency International Corruption Index and through this symposium we should be able to to identify innovative responses to this crisis," she said
Participants drawn from the Parliament Of Kenya, Parliament of Uganda, Office of the Director of Public Prosecution Kenya, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, Kenya Institute of Public Policy and Research, Ford Foundation and Members of Baringo. Kakamega , Nyeri and Uasin Gishu County Assemblies gathered to deliberate on pertinent issues with regards to the Legislature and its role in fighting corruption.

The Clerk of the Senate and the Secretary of the Parliamentary Service Commission in his opening remarks noted that Corruption is a serious problem that affects all arms of government and society as a whole. He further said that Article 1 and 2 of the Constitution of Kenya rests all sovereign power with the people of Kenya, who express it through democratically elected representatives who create laws, oversight and represent the citizenry through its committees and the budget making process.

The two day symposium seeks to explore and adopt innovative initiatives using modern tools to strengthen existing legal framework, embolden and support prosecuting and enforcement agencies and increasing budgetary allocations to enforcement agencies.
On her part, Executive Director -Center for Parliamentary Studies, Prof. Nyokabi Kamau underscored that graft is a multifaceted complex global phenomenon and is a major social-economic challenge facing Kenya. It was also noted in the meeting that Parliamentary over sight is a key determinant to the logical success on the fight against corruption.She further said , “The Centre for Parliamentary Studies has developed a comprehensive training in ethics, morality and corruption that will be rolled out in the coming months.”

During the various presentations throughout the conference, policy analysts from the Ethics and Anti Corruption Commission, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution, Ford Foundation, Kenya Institute of Public Policy and Research and the Parliament of Kenya were urged to develop and adopt innovative initiatives and embolden collaborations between National and County Legislatures.

Participants noted the need for Parliament to strategically consolidate its partnerships with agencies directly engaged in development of Kenya’s anti-corruption regulatory framework, exercising regulatory oversight over relevant institutions, providing budgetary allocations, rewards or remunerations in respect of anti- corruption agencies and effort, strengthening the recruitment of persons of
public prosecutors and advancing public discourse on corruption related issues through public debate and advocacy.

The Centre for Parliamentary Studies has developed a comprehensive training in ethics, morality and corruption that will be rolled out in the coming months.