Kambi ready for worst penalty if guilty of graft

Labour Cabinet Secretary Kazungu Kambi says he is ready to die if he is found culpable of corruption.

Speaking during a news conference, Kambi said sacking is not sufficient punishment to deter graft in the public sector.

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“When I am found to be corrupt, the solution is not only for me to be sacked but even to be killed just like the Chinese government does by executing people convicted of corruption,” he said.

“We want this culture of people peddling allegations against others without any evidence to stop. Such people should also face the full force of the law. Being named in a report doesn’t mean that I am corrupt but I support the directive to step aside 200 percent.”

“As a law-abiding citizen who also respects the rule of law, I would not want my staying on in office to hamper the investigations.”

He pleaded his innocence and asked the Ethic and Anti Corruption Commission to expedite the investigations into graft allegation against him.

“As I step aside, I urge the EACC to comply with the 60-day timeline spelt out to conclusively and comprehensively carry out the investigations as directed by the President. I am innocent and confident that upon completion of the investigation, I will be vindicated,” Kambi said.

He is among five cabinet secretaries mentioned in a confidential dossier the anti-graft body submitted to the President who in turn handed it to Parliament for investigations.

Kambi claims that the people behind the allegations of graft against him want him removed because he had sealed graft loopholes in National Social Security Fund (NSSF).

“I have not yet been informed of the allegations against me but I suspect it is largely to do with NSSF. For many years, NSSF used to be a den of corruption but the NSSF of today is not the NSSF of yesterday. We have reformed it and sealed corruption loopholes,” he claimed.

The CS said that some selfish personalities whom he did not name are fighting reforms in NSSF in order to continue milking the organization through corrupt deals.

“Corruption in the Labour Ministry has been known for a long time, especially NSSF. But in the last two years, we have streamlined things and pushed some people out. These people may be behind these malicious claims against me,” he said.

Kambi plans to visit EACC offices this week to get the full allegations against him and prepare himself to address them once investigations formally begin.

Source