Former Chief Justice (CJ) and Presidential candidate David Maraga has criticized President William Ruto over his KSh1.5 trillion Infrastructure Fund.

In a statement on October 28, Maraga opposed the Fund, calling as one of the schemes used by the government to loot public funds.

“The Infrastructure Fund proposal by President Ruto is just the latest in this government’s unending corruption and looting scandals that are destroying lives, futures, and dreams of Kenyans, particularly young Kenyans whose futures and dreams rise and fall based on the conduct of those entrusted with power to determine how best our resources should be used to serve Kenyans. We must not allow President Ruto to mortgage our beloved country,” he said.

Here is Maraga’s full statement:

President William Ruto and his administration of committing governance faux pas since they came into office. Among these have been:

1. The KSh 111 Billion Healthcare Digitization Scandal. In what was marketed as a digital health revolution under the new Social Health Authority (SHA), the government irregularly and illegally awarded a KSh 104.8 billion contract through a shadowy, uncompetitive procurement process, outside any approved budget, plan, or value-for-money test.

The Auditor General has confirmed that the contract was neither budgeted for, nor planned. The award was also non-competitive. Even worse, the contract locked Kenya into a private vendor monopoly, denying our nation the freedom and flexibility to adopt better technologies in the future. An additional KSh 7 billion was irregularly attached for “training and support” with no disclosure as to who or what would be trained.

Net result: a KSh 111 billion loss together with chaos in healthcare delivery nationwide.

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2. The Fertilizer Fraud: What began as a flagship intervention to “empower farmers” degenerated into a massive corruption scandal involving fake fertilizer distributed by state agencies. The government on its own motion has admitted losses exceeding KSh 12 billion. Over 7,000 farmers have been affected and public funds looted through inflated tenders and ghost supplies.

Net result: 12 billion lost and a deliberate theft from our farmers.

3. The Hustler Fund Mirage: What was Promoted as empowerment for the poor, the Hustler Fund has become a political gimmick, riddled with mismanagement and opacity. Despite billions being disbursed, it has failed to lift MSMEs out of debt or build sustainable enterprises. There has been no audited disclosure of recoveries, and defaults are reported to be close to 70%.

Net result: Kenyans are paying for a revolving campaign fund.

4. The Adani Airport Deal: The government secretly negotiated to hand over Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Adani Group-one of the most corrupt conglomerates in the world, mired in global fraud allegations. Government officials were dispatched to defend Adani in the media, performing public relations for a foreign company instead of defending Kenyans’ sovereignty.

After public outrage that forced the deal’s collapse, reports now suggest taxpayers may be forced to pay a cancellation fee.

Net Result: Kenyans will be forced to pay for monies that benefited none of the ordinary citizens.

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5. The Culture of Rewarding Corruption: President Ruto has repeatedly appointed and retained individuals facing corruption charges or adverse audit findings-including former governors and senior officials-into his administration. An open and explicit pursuit, embrace, and promotion of thieves of public resources.

Net Result: In President Ruto’s administration theft of public resources is not punished, but rewarded and or promoted.

This makes President William Ruto’s latest proposal for an Infrastructure Fund, purportedly to raise over KSh 1.5 trillion for roads, an illustrative, tragic irony of our times: a government that loots with one hand and begs with the other.

I believe that our country needs leadership that:

• Treats every tax shilling as if it were the last one we have.
• Treats corruption as the existential threat it is to our country.
• Treats young Kenyans with priority, as citizens with dreams and aspirations which we must help them realize, not as collateral damage of insatiable elite greed.
• Treats public office as an honor to serve, not an opportunity and a license to loot.

This is why I believe Kenyans must demand change, to RESET, RESTORE and REBUILD our Country, and we need to work jointly on it as a people.

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Former Chief Justice (CJ) and Presidential candidate David Maraga has criticized President William Ruto over his KSh1.5 trillion Infrastructure Fund. PHOTO/Maraga X.