Kenya is perceived as the second least corrupt State in East Africa even as its police force takes the unenviable position of being the most corrupt institution in the country.
The latest bribery survey by Transparency International indicates that Kenya has recorded an improved ranking in the East African Bribery Index falling from third position in 2010 to fourth place in 2011.
Corruption prevalence improved marginally from 31.9 per cent in 2010 to 28.8 per cent in 2011. This is a significant improvement compared to 2009 when Kenya was ranked first in the region with a prevalence of 45 per cent.
Rwanda has maintained its position as the region’s least corrupt state at 5.1 per cent while Burundi is the most corrupt country at 37.9 per cent. Uganda and Tanzania have been ranked second and third, respectively.
At the institutional level, the police, revenue authorities and the Judiciary across the different countries were poorly rated.
Uganda led pack
Uganda police led the pack of the most bribery-prone institutions in the region, followed by Burundi police and the Burundi Revenue Authority.
The Kenya police is the only Kenyan institution ranked among the top 10 in the regional aggregate index, with a score of 81 per cent, compared to four institutions in the top list in 2010.
The Department of Defence and the Nairobi City Council took second and third positions in Kenya, respectively.
The Ministry of Lands moved from position five in 2010 to position four this year while the Registrar of Persons has also moved one step to position five. The Immigration Department, Mombasa Municipal Council, Judiciary, Ministry of Medical Services and the provincial administration also feature in the top 10 list.
Deputy police spokesman Charles Owino attributed corruption in the police force to their poor terms of service.
He said it was unimaginable that the people entrusted with enforcing the law could lead in the bribery index arguing that it could have been a result of “limitations of statistics”. Only 7.1 per cent of the respondents in Kenya reported incidents of corruption.
Transparency International- Kenya director Samuel Kimeu called on the police to improve levels of transparency and enhance public access to information to achieve accountability. Mr Kimeu attributed the fall in the level of corruption in Kenya to institutions created by the new Constitution.
Corruption prevalence improved marginally from 31.9 per cent in 2010 to 28.8 per cent in 2011. This is a significant improvement compared to 2009 when Kenya was ranked first in the region with a prevalence of 45 per cent.
Rwanda has maintained its position as the region’s least corrupt state at 5.1 per cent while Burundi is the most corrupt country at 37.9 per cent. Uganda and Tanzania have been ranked second and third, respectively.
At the institutional level, the police, revenue authorities and the Judiciary across the different countries were poorly rated.
Uganda led pack
Uganda police led the pack of the most bribery-prone institutions in the region, followed by Burundi police and the Burundi Revenue Authority.
The Kenya police is the only Kenyan institution ranked among the top 10 in the regional aggregate index, with a score of 81 per cent, compared to four institutions in the top list in 2010.
The Department of Defence and the Nairobi City Council took second and third positions in Kenya, respectively.
The Ministry of Lands moved from position five in 2010 to position four this year while the Registrar of Persons has also moved one step to position five. The Immigration Department, Mombasa Municipal Council, Judiciary, Ministry of Medical Services and the provincial administration also feature in the top 10 list.
Deputy police spokesman Charles Owino attributed corruption in the police force to their poor terms of service.
He said it was unimaginable that the people entrusted with enforcing the law could lead in the bribery index arguing that it could have been a result of “limitations of statistics”. Only 7.1 per cent of the respondents in Kenya reported incidents of corruption.
Transparency International- Kenya director Samuel Kimeu called on the police to improve levels of transparency and enhance public access to information to achieve accountability. Mr Kimeu attributed the fall in the level of corruption in Kenya to institutions created by the new Constitution.
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