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Kenya

Khalwale down but not out

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 19 – Ikolomani MP Dr Bonny Khalwale has said he ‘is not deterred by defeat’, just a day after losing a censure motion against Agriculture Minister William Ruto.

In an exclusive interview with Capital News on Thursday, Mr Khalwale said he would continue to make politicians and especially the government accountable for their actions.

“MPs must discharge full responsibilities, thinking that by being used as a robot or political voting machines on things that do not promote the interest of the people who elected him, then he is failing. We will bring censure motions when necessary,” he said firmly.

The legislator noted that the fight against graft was tough and risky since those accused use all means in their power to protect themselves.

He said he was not threatened by MPs who opposed him and vowed to fight corruption at all costs.

“In a very sad way Kiraitu (Energy Minister) warned me if I think the bell will be rolling for others, it might do so for me, but let me assure them, I was more lethal when I was out of Parliament than when I am inside,” said the Ikolomani legislator.

Why he lost

Mr Khalwale is of the opinion that he lost his motion because many MPs were involved in the maize scandal while others had been compromised to support Mr Ruto.

He sadly recounted his struggle to get someone to second the motion, and yet initially when the scandal came into light most MPs declared their support for him.

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“Ruto had at his disposal formidable tactics of lobbying, whatever tactics he used were very effective, every time I mentioned to a colleague, after sometime they changed their mind and gave me excuses, some of them never even voted, they deliberately ducked.”

Mr Khalwale however admitted that he was sad to have lost the motion, which he described as a major setback in the fight against corruption.

He also termed it as a great test of the legitimacy of Parliament and what it stood for.

“What counts for some Members of Parliament is not the welfare of the people who vote for them but their political interests. What we lost yesterday (Wednesday) was the legitimacy of Parliament,” he said.

“Yesterday we entrenched the fact that MPs can be united in protecting corruption.”

Mr Khalwale vowed to continue using tactics within his means to ensure that the maize scandal is not pushed under the carpet and those responsible are made to account for the scam.

On Wednesday, the MP lost his censure motion garnering only 22 votes against 119 who opposed it.

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