The fine imposed on Smith & Ouzman in the UK should be given to the anti-corruption commission, not the Kenya government, Kenyan activists have said

Kenyans for Peace with Truth and Justice sent a letter just two days before directors of the printing company are sentenced for giving bribes for contracts in Africa, including Kenya.

In the letter to the director of the UK Serious Fraud Office, the activists say the money can be spent in a transparent and accountable way to strengthen the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission’s work.

“Given that the government has done nothing to hold to account the election officers implicated in the Smith & Ouzman bribery case, it is our opinion that giving the money directly and unconditionally to such a government would amount to little more than sending it back, if not to the same people who colluded with Smith & Ouzman to steal from the Kenyan people and undermine their electoral process,” KPTJ said in the letter.

Directors of Smith & Ouzman were found guilty of giving bribes to officials of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission and the Kenya National Examinations Council.

The bribes, the UK court heard, were to facilitate the acquisition of multibillion-shilling contracts in Africa and were code-named ‘Chicken’.

The sentencing of the case, determined last December, will be done tomorrow.

The activists said improving EACC’s capacity would ensure that the crimes committed by the company and IEBC officials against Kenyans do not recur.

“Kenya has frequently paid a high price in terms of lives lost and property destroyed as a result of disputed elections, the 2007-08 post-election violence being only the most extreme example,” KPTJ said.

The lobby group said political violence is often the direct consequence of having elections managed by officials of questionable integrity who cannot be trusted by the voting public to deliver a free and fair election.

KPTJ said the money Smith & Ouzman has been found to have paid in bribes may be relatively small, but the long-term impact of the crimes is devastating to the development of a young democracy like Kenya.

The activists said the government has been tolerant to corruption as those named in the scandal still hold public office.

– See more at: http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/chickengate-fine-should-be-given-eacc-says-lobby#sthash.969xa9XJ.Q7JLs6C4.dpuf