UNITED sTATES INTERNATIONAL university

Endemic corruption has been very difficult to eradicate in Kenya. Does Kenyan culture contribute to corruption, and how can it be changed?

EMB 6050: BUSINESS ETHICS AND GOVERNANCE, ASSIGNMENT

MOSES NYABILA, 650630

6/21/2010

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Assignment

Endemic corruption has been very difficult to eradicate in Kenya. Does Kenyan culture

contribute to corruption, and how can it be changed? With the help of actual examples,

explain your answer by reference to any model of culture with which you are familiar

1. Executive summary

Endemic corruption continues to deny Kenya her rightful place in the world responsible

and progressive nations. The vice has been a drain to the national coffers; undermined

provision of essential services such as healthcare and education; led to collapse of key sectors

and subsectors; led to loss of many lives as a result of flowed election; as well cost the

country enormous goodwill and standing in the eyes of international in the community of

nations.

In this paper, I have sort to link the growing cases of corruption to underlying cultural

shifts including materialism, individualism, moral relativism, tribalism, attitude towards state

resources, prosperity gospel etc. In my view the urban elite are slowly breaking from the

influences of their ethnic traditions and embracing cosmopolitan outlooks and attitudes. It is

this emerging amalgam of cultures that fuels corruption.

Fighting corruption is an absolute and urgent imperative. This paper highlights some of

the campaign angles needed to combat the growing specter of corruption. These approaches

include religion, economics, ethics, business, and professional cases.

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2. Introduction

According to the Report of the Common Wealth Expert Group on Good Governance

and the Elimination of Corruption, in the book Fighting Corruption – promoting Good

Governance, produced by the Common Wealth Secretariat 2000, Corruption is generally

defined as the abuse of public office for private gain. This definition has been encaged

because of the widened scope of corruption to cover the abuse of all offices of trust for

private gain, whether in the public or private sectors. Corruption manifest itself in various

ways and it is useful to distinguish between Personal Corruption (motivated by personal gain)

and Political Corruption (motivated by political gain). A further distinction can be made

between individual corruption and organizational or institutional corruption.

Legal definitions of corruption tend to stress behaviors that are crimes or actions that

involve the abuse of trust or the "improper influencing of people in positions of authority"

(i.e. blackmail or bribery). But morality and trust are social variables that cannot easily be

prescribed or defined by law. While there are clearly examples of outright corruption which

might include larceny and grand theft by public officials, there are also many shades of grey.

Nor is it necessarily the case that "corruption = immorality," at least in the public mind. For

example, tax evasion or deliberate failure to declare income may be a crime from a legal

point of view, but in countries where the government itself is widely perceived as corrupt and

parasitical, such action may be seen - rightly or wrongly - as a legitimate act of resistance

against an oppressive state

The English word "corruption" often fails to do justice to the variety of meanings and

practices that are subsumed under that label. Gifts are an interesting case in point. What

distinguishes gift-giving from bribery is not the transaction itself but the morality of the

exchange; the social context and ideas about reciprocity that govern such transactions - and

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the relationships that they create. In much of India, China and Latin America, for example, an

entire moral economy and way of relating to power can be glimpsed from the study of

corruption. Narratives of corruption are often the means by which, and through which, people

make sense of their political systems and the state.

Endemic corruption has indeed been difficult to eradicate and seem to be on the

increase by the day instead. Kenyan culture defined as “An integrated pattern of human

knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and

social learning; or the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes

an institution, organization or group” combined with low risk of detection and punishment;

glaring opportunity for theft; and low salaries have conspired to turn Kenya into pariah state

only comparable to Nigeria and only slightly ahead of war tone countries of Somalia and

DR Congo. In 2009, the country was placed 146th out of 180 countries surveyed, according

to Transparency International's 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). The report is a

measure of domestic and public sector corruption. Kenya recorded a CPI score of 2.2

indicating high perception of bribery. Countries are measured on a scale from 0 (perceived

to be highly corrupt) to 10 (seen to have low levels of corruption).

The country tied with crisis-laden Zimbabwe and performed poorer than her East

African neighbors. Tanzania was ranked 126 with a CPI score of 2.6 while Uganda was at

position 130 scoring 2.5. The CPI measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption in

a given country and is a composite index, drawing on 13 different expert and business

surveys. A total of seven reports were used to assess Kenya's performance. It is instructive

that 95% of those interviewed thought Kenya was either corrupt or very corrupt.

Past kneejerk attempts to fight corruption have been at best token and at worst a

perpetuation of corruption. A plethora of institutions, committees and initiatives set up to

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fight corruption including Governance, Justice, Law and Order Sector (GJLOS), Kenya Anti

Corruption Commission (KACC), parliamentary committees (e.g PAC, PIC), Kenya Police,

etc seem not to have had any major impact on corruption or public perception of it. The tussle

between parliament and the executive over reappointment of Justice Aaron Ringera as the

Executive Director of KACC raised questions of procedure, transparency and favoritism. Past

attempts to investigate and prosecute grand corruption have bore no fruit leading to

widespread public skepticism and cynicism.

3. Background and history

Endemic corruption in Kenya has been the subject of various books (Mute 2001;

Kidombo 2004; Sihanya 2005; Mati 2007). Anti-corruption has become an ‘industry’ of non-

governmental and governmental organizations well funded by donors and the tax payer, with

the former head of Kenya’s Anti-Corruption Commission, Justice Aaron Ringera, earning

KSh 2.5m ($45,000 or £18,121)1 a month delivering few tangible results.

Throughout the country’s short life, numerous scandals have been unearthed the

most notorious being the infamous Goldenberg and Anglo-Leasing scandals. With the

deluge of scandals the question that bothers many commentators and observers is "where

did the rain start beating us? In the 1970s the late Tanzania President Julius Nyerere

unflatteringly referred to Kenya as a man eats man society. Kenyan officialdom protested

then, but today, even Nyerere’s fiercest critics must admit that he was right. Corruption

invaded Kenya country in its infancy; almost immediately after independence the political

leadership saw the occupation of public offices as an opportunity for personal

aggrandisement and not as positions of trust. The story is told by Philip Ochieng and Karimi

in their book The Kenyatta Succession where President Jomo Kenyatta chided Bildad

Kaggia, a freedom fighter, for not using his position to amass wealth.

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Mega corruption started taking root after the recommendations of the [in]famous

Ndegwa Commission. Named after its Chairperson Phillip Ndegwa, The Commission

recommended among other things that Civil Servants be allowed to engage in business.

This was at a time of centralised economic governance when Government was the biggest

business partner and Civil Servants with insider information had a field day. They became

what PLO Lumumba calls “New warlords of corruption”. Indeed, it is instructive that the

senior Civil Servants of those early years and even their latter-day successors despite their

poor/low pay are some of the richest Kenyans; obviously not from business but

manipulation of Government contracts.

The abject abandon with which corruption was embraced in Kenya became blatant

in the 1977 and 1978 when Senior Government officials openly participated in smuggling

Ugandan coffee through lake Victoria’s Sio Port, Usenge and overland at Chepkube in

Western Kenya. Nobody was punished for these crimes and the culture of impunity had

arrived. When Daniel Moi took office nothing changed. First, because the players remained

the same and the culture of disrespect for public property and impunity was alive and well.

4. Culture and corruption in Kenya

Culture is broadly defined as the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and

practices that characterizes an institution, organization or group. After a few generations

of interaction, intermarriage, integrated schooling and urbanization; Kenyan elites are

increasingly (from different communities) homogeneous in their thoughts, outlook and

lifestyle. For purposes of this paper, I have chosen to treat Kenya’s urban elite as separate

“cultural community” distinct from their rural Kenya cousins. Even though a Kikuyu and a

Kenyan of Indian origin may speak different mother tongues, eat different “home-cooked

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meals” and worship at different temples; their contemporary view of money, material

possession, morality etc though may differ in intensity are in many ways on average similar.

This culture is informed by such factors as colonialism and its attendant discriminatory

treatment of locals, land grabbing, propping of commission-earning agents in form local

chiefs, and monetary economics; skewed “Africanization” of farms, jobs, businesses at

independence; Judeo-christian concepts of puritan morality, distribution of blessings to the

flock according to their tithe contribution and faith, and forgiveness; Indo-china concepts of

gifting, reciprocity and materialism; Pastoralist economics of “grazing to the ground” then

moving to greener pastures as espoused by the Moi regime; etc.

This “emergent culture” is characterized by growing materialism, consumerism,

individualism, reciprocity, power-distance, prosperity-gospel, instant gratification,

tribalism/racism etc.

a. Materialism

Most people seek after what they do not possess and are thus enslaved by the very

things they want to acquire. William R. Bradford -Anwar El-Sadat. This great, though

disastrous, culture can only change as we begin to stand off and see... the inveterate

materialism which has become the model for cultures around the world. Materialism is when

a person must have all the physical items they desire, such as high end clothes and jewelry or

even expensive cars.

“There is absolutely no doubt that the so-called ‘First’ World has exported up to now

and continues to export its spiritual toxic waste that contaminates the peoples of other

continents, particularly those of Africa,” Pope Benedict

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Materialism in Kenya manifests itself in form of grand architecture, multiple car

ownership, expensive dressing, etc. Growing appetite for housing has driven the price of land

and houses in middle-income neighborhoods to an ever high. Banks have taken advantage of

this phenomenon by providing ready mortgages, instant car loans, credit cards. The

competitive nature of materialism has pushed a large section of the population to engage in

corruption as means of catching up with classmates, associates, colleagues. Through bribes,

embezzlement and outright stealing a clerk in the Ministry of Lands owns a block of flats in

Kayole, drives a Mercedes Benze 200, and lives in Kileleshwa on a government salary of Ksh

40,000 per month.

b) Gifting and reciprocity

Gift-giving is the act of transferring a present, or gift, to another. Gift-giving occurs

in both social relationships and economic or business exchanges. A gift is anything of

value, however large or small in value. The gift can be money or something else of value

such as personal goods, services, property, or in many cases entertainment. In principle, a

gift should be a voluntary free transfer not requiring any form of compensation or

reciprocity. A voluntary gift is neither a gratuity nor a tip, provided as full or partial

compensation for some personal service (such as restaurant tipping), or a bribe, provided or

offered to an agent in expectation of some desired opportunity.

A transfer of value with the appearance of a gift might arise in a number of motives

including appreciation, altruism, bribery or extortion, custom or tradition, gratuity,

reciprocity, or tax incentive. Reciprocity is an act or expectation of exchange between two

parties. This reciprocity may be an established custom or tradition in some societies or

communities. It may be traditional to provide some gifts, particularly entertainment and

small tokens of respect or appreciation, in business settings. Corruption is bribery of or

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extortion by agents in which typically money, or some other item of value, is exchanged for

a contract or other valuable opportunity.

The key feature of corruption, demonstrated in the form of bribery, is that an agent

accepts something of value from a third party to act contrary to the interest(s) of the agent's

principal(s). Public employees in democracies and private enterprise employees are agents.

Their principals are the citizens or the owners, respectively. With certain exceptions, it is

not generally possible under this definition to bribe a principal. Some transactions with a

hereditary sovereign, as a principal, might still be corrupt or unethical on some other basis.

Gifts and entertainment expenses are important even in advanced market economies.

At independence, change of pecking order or what Jomo Kenyatta referred to as

“about-turn” resulted in Africans taking over the reins of government and the attendant

control of resources and contracts. The Indian community and their culture of gifting and

reciprocity went on overdrive. African civil servants found themselves deluged by gifts of

shocking magnitude ranging from houses, expensive cars, holiday tickets, cash etc

c) Power distance

Hofstede’s Power distance Index measures the extent to which the less powerful

members of organizations and institutions (like the family) accept and expect that power is

distributed unequally. This represents inequality (more versus less), but defined from below,

not from above. It suggests that a society’s level of inequality is endorsed by the followers as

much as by the leaders.

For example, Germany has a 35 on the cultural scale of Hofstede’s analysis.

Compared to Arab countries where the power distance is very high (80) and Austria where it

very low (11), Germany is somewhat in the middle. Germany does not have a large gap

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between the wealthy and the poor, but have a strong belief in equality for each citizen.

Germans have the opportunity to rise in society.

On the other hand, the power distance in the United States scores a 40 on the cultural scale.

The United States exhibits a more unequal distribution of wealth compared to German

society. As the years go by it seems that the distance between the ‘have’ and ‘have-nots’

grows larger and larger.

Kenya’s power distance index of 64 means it is more unequal than the USA but less

so than Arab countries. The higher the PDI, the less ordinary citizens and subordinates are

likely to question the conduct of their leaders and bosses.

d) Individualism

Individualism is defined as: (1) a doctrine that the interests of the individual are or

ought to be ethically paramount; (2) : the conception that all values, rights, and duties

originate in individuals b : a theory maintaining the political and economic independence of

the individual and stressing individual initiative, action, and interests; also : conduct or

practice guided by such a theory

In our individualistic subculture, the role of government is considered limited to

responding to the specific demands of the citizens. Government is not created to establish a

better society rather government's role is to promote commerce.  As a result, it becomes

another actor in commerce that competes for and distributes resources such as tax dollars,

patronage jobs, contracts and zoning decisions. In this way participating in government is a

career choice that one makes much like any other profession. As a professional, one is

expected to make a decent living. Therefore a certain amount of corruption is acceptable and

tolerated, since government officials have traditionally been unpaid or under paid. 

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In Kenya, the phenomenon of individualism is best exemplified the neglect or

destruction of anything public or collectively owned. Instead of allocating resources to public

hospitals, schools, universities, the Kenyan elite are sending their children to expensive

private providers.

e) Moral Relativism

Moral relativism is the view that ethical standards, morality, and positions of right or

wrong are culturally based and therefore subject to a person's individual choice. We can all

decide what is right for ourselves. You decide what's right for you, and I'll decide what's right

for me. Moral relativism says, "It's true for me, if I believe it."

Bhikkhu Bodhi, an American Buddhist monk, wrote: “By assigning value and

spiritual ideals to private subjectivity, the materialistic world view, threatens to undermine

any secure objective foundation for morality. The result is the widespread moral degeneration

that we witness today. To counter this tendency, mere moral exhortation is insufficient. If

morality is to function as an efficient guide to conduct, it cannot be propounded as a self-

justifying scheme but must be embedded in a more comprehensive spiritual system which

grounds morality in a transpersonal order. Religion must affirm, in the clearest terms, that

morality and ethical values are not mere decorative frills of personal opinion, not subjective

superstructure, but intrinsic laws of the cosmos built into the heart of reality.”

Moral relativism has steadily been accepted as the primary moral philosophy of

modern society, a culture that was previously governed by a "Judeo-Christian" view of

morality. While these "Judeo-Christian" standards continue to be the foundation for civil law,

most people hold to the concept that right or wrong are not absolutes, but can be determined

by each individual. Morals and ethics can be altered from one situation, person, or

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circumstance to the next. Essentially, moral relativism says that anything goes, because life is

ultimately without meaning. Words like "ought" and "should" are rendered meaningless. In

this way, moral relativism makes the claim that it is morally neutral. (All-about God News;

www.allaboutgod.com )

In Kenya moral relativism has given elite Christians and Muslims alike a blank

cheque to engage in all manner of corrupt practices without the risk being ostracized by the

community. Justification for search practices often include: – rampant misuse of taxes by

government, previous office holder stole a lot more, it is for the benefit of our community.

Under a weak legal system such as Kenya’s the negation of universal good and evil

through creeping moral-relativism is probably the single largest contributor to the current

state of affairs.

f) Prosperity gospel

Prosperity theology (also known as prosperity doctrine, the health and wealth gospel, or

the prosperity gospel) is a religious belief found among "tens of millions” of Christians

centered on the notion that God provides material prosperity for those he favors. It has been

defined by the belief that "Jesus blesses believers with riches” or more specifically as the

teaching that "believers have a right to the blessings of health and wealth and that they can

obtain these blessings through positive confessions of faith and the 'sowing of seeds'

through the faithful payments of tithes and offerings."

In the words of journalist Hanna Rosin, the prosperity gospel "is not a clearly defined

denomination, but a strain of belief that runs through the Pentecostal Church and a

surprising number of mainstream evangelical churches, with varying degrees of intensity."

It arose in the United States after World War II championed by Oral Roberts and became

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particularly popular in the decade of the 1990s.More recently, the theology has been

exported to less prosperous areas of the world, with mixed results. Prosperity theology is

most commonly found within the charismatic and Pentecostal traditions of Christianity

although it is not exclusive to these traditions. In some countries, adherence to prosperity

gospel beliefs is more common amongst charismatics than the practice of speaking in

tongues. The teaching is based on interpretations of certain Biblical verses such as:

Malachi 3:10 - "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the LORD of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows" (New American Standard Bible).

Deuteronomy 8:18 - "But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day" (New American Standard Bible). [7]

John 10: 10 - "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

3 John 2-4 - "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers."

g) Instant gratification

Unfortunately, this focus on the "NOW" is an insidious long-term trend undermining

America, our economy, our markets and our future as a world power. The narrow thinking

represented by Cramer's Mad Money world, Tolle's spiritual fantasyland and the USA Today

poll are more dangerous than massive deficits, Washington corruption, Wall Street greed,

global warming and the war on terror because short-term thinking is eating away at the soul

and spirit of individual Americans.

These gratifications are actually a hangover of the very old Persian system of Nazrana

that marked the pre-Mughal, Mughal and subsequent periods in the entire sub continent.

Every seeker of favours from an Emperor, his Emirs or other officials was expected to offer a

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tribute to a superior and these were given and accepted with grace and absolutely no sense of

shame.

g. Mali ya Umma

When asked by a reporter why he robbed banks, a famous American bank robber Willie

Sutton is alleged to have replied: "Because that is where the money is." Over to Kenyan

leaders, why are you corrupt? I guess the answer is: "Because public wealth/property belongs

to no one in particular!" says Columnist: James Shikwati in his Feature Article Corruption in

Africa: Not in My Name! Wed, 28 Jan 2009 carried in Modern Ghana blog

(modernghana.com).

According to Mr. Shikati; the concept of Mali ya Umma (public wealth/property)

flourished during the colonial times when ordinary Kenyans and by extension Africans felt

disconnected from governance systems and would sabotage all that symbolized authority.

Vandalizing public property was part of the fight against colonialism for those who could not

get to the bush to confront the Whiteman. Driven by the ideology of "it is our turn to eat," the

founding fathers at independence engaged in a plundering orgy that left the common citizenry

bewildered. The resultant effect was the perpetuation of the culture of sabotage which

manifests itself in the form of corruption.

The generation that grew up when destruction of mzungu (Whiteman) property could

turn one into a village hero is currently running the affairs of government. It is currently

heroic to steal from government. Wired deep in the minds of leadership elites is the erroneous

belief that government does not exist to serve the interest of Kenyans but that of others

(perhaps Western powers). A number of Kenyan leaders are graduates from public

universities where destroying toilet sinks, bathroom taps, and fire-fighting equipment

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amongst others was seen to be a 'normal' affair. To them, pinching a few billion shillings

from public coffers is not stealing anyone's goat, for the goat belongs to all of us!

h. Tribalism

Titus Naikuni is CEO of Kenya Airways; he recently made a speech condemning the

practice of tribalism. When describing the potential damage tribalism poses to Kenya's

economic prospects he stated, " When people start looking at each other from a tribal point

of view, and you are not employed because of your own credentials, then it starts affecting

productivity." "...the results could be disastrous for an organization."

Tribalism and corruption long have been singled out as having the most devastating

effect in slowing Kenya’s ascendance to a modern society. Extreme form of tribal politics

has led political assassinations, rigging of elections, election related violence. Indeed

Kenya’s economic growth graph mirrors political activity and elections. The current

impasse on who becomes the managing director of New KCC is driven by tribalism. That

this happens at a time when the dairy industry is saddled with challenges of glut goes to

confirm just how tribalism is bringing the country to its knees.

Those who by virtue of their positions of privilege plunder public funds find ready

protection from politicians, journalists and trade unionists who hail from their tribes. “We

are being finished” has become a rallying mantra for thieves.

War against corruption in Kenya will not be worn until tribalism is tamed.

3. Fighting Corruption

The fight against corruption in Kenya calls for concerted and extra-ordinary efforts

by government, private sector, and citizens. A multi-dimensional approach including law

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enforcement and legislation; corporate governance and ethics; strengthening of internal

controls in government institutions; and sustained campaigns through massive public

education is required to reduce opportunities for corruption, promptly punish infringement,

redirect public opinion and correcting flawed stereotypes that perpetuate corruption.

On the cultural front, Kenya needs to confront entrenched and emerging trends,

moral dilemmas, lifestyles, schools of thought, attitudes and beliefs that grease the wheels

of corruption as seen above. As this is essentially a competition over the hearts and minds

of Kenyans, it will require the complete buy-in and active support of opinion shapers

including leading politicians, religious leaders, teachers, professional bodies, associations,

business leaders, trade unionists, media, and celebrities.

Rigorous sustained public discourse on actual and potential cost of corruption on

business, investment, economic growth, houses of warship, way of life, image, and political

stability will go a long way in debunking the growing the myth that corruption contributes to

personal well being. Without doubt corruption has a negative impact on Socio-economic,

political and institutional domains of the body politic of Kenya and other African states. Its

impact is not only limited to the size of the payments involved, but the very process of

extorting and giving bribes has distortionary effects that are socio-economic and political,

even in terms of economic growth.

a) The ethical case

Corruption is inherently wrong. It is a misuse of power and position and has a

disproportionate impact on the poor and disadvantaged. It undermines the integrity of all

involved and damages the fabric of the organizations to which they belong. The reality that

laws making corrupt practices criminal may not always be enforced is no justification for

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accepting corrupt practices. To fight corruption in all its forms is simply the right thing to

do.

b) The business case

There are many reasons why it is in any company's business interest to ensure that it

does not engage in corrupt practices. All companies, large and small, are vulnerable and the

potential for damage to them is considerable. Some of the key reasons for avoiding

involvement in corrupt practices are: legal and reputational risks, financial cost, security,

unethical behaviour by employees, economic growth

c) Economic case

Corruption slows down investment and economic growth, the fact that bribery

contracts are unlike regular contracts that are enforceable. Corruption also raises the cost of

doing business as officials may introduce certain conditions to ensure that they get bribes,

through delays and unnecessary requirements; discourages new ideas and innovations; leads

to the decline in real per capita incomes, inflation, a widening budget and balance of payment

deficits, and declining official production and exports. Other negative consequences of

corruption include: promotion of inequality among firms; leads to a reduction in the quality

of products; diversion of funds from investment and other production activities. Politically,

corruption leads to a loss of faith on the part of the people and thus its legitimacy and power

with equality and democratic values are undermined. It strengthens bad governance, through

the absence of the rule of Law, respect for human rights, no accountability, and transparency.

Corruption has also led to massive neglect of the social sector, which has substantially

decreased the quality of human resources in African states over the years. The provision of

educational and health opportunities have been limited, this impacting negatively on the

quality of life, labour, productivity, incomes, innovativeness, competitiveness, and poverty

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reduction in Africa States. Donor’s creditability has also been eroded. There have been

instances in which donors have been critical as to the commitment of Africa State in handling

corruption in their respective states. Corruption has also led to the weakness of structure and

institutions crucial for better governance.

Generally speaking, corruption is a species of governance failure and can only be

mitigated when Africa states are committed to ensure Good Governance. Existing structures

and institutions such as Anti-Corruption Commissions and Bureaus should be strengthened

and the national Campaigns against corruption intensified in African Countries. Unless and

until Africans are committed, corruption is the cancer that will eat up all the socio-economic

and political achievements of the continent and Africa might not see the light of day.

d) Religious Case

Most religions in Kenya in Kenya prohibit corruption and its attendant accumulation

of wealth. In Exodus 6:15, The bible says, “Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those

who see and twists the words of the righteous”. Micah 3: 15 says, “You will plant but not

harvest; you will press olives but not use the oil on yourselves, you will crush grapes but

not drink the wine”.

e) Professional case

Kenya is becoming a leading supplier of professional services to its neighbours and

wider Africa. Rising cases of professional malpractices including non-performance,

misappropriation of client money, infringement of patents and copy rights are conspiring to

give Kenyan professionals a bad name. Soiled reputation will mean leads to reduced flow of

contracts and lower billing rates.

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Where rent seeking proves more lucrative than productive work, talent will be

misallocated. Financial incentives may lure the more talented and better educated to engage

in rent seeking rather than in productive work, with adverse consequences for the country's

growth rate.

f) Corruption and politics

Every politician has to raise political funds for their political campaigns so even the

personally honest ones have to condone corruption. Funds are needed to feed and transport

several hundred party workers over the poll period and supply posters and polling booth

stationary to say nothing of liquor or other inducements for some of their supporters and

competitive politics gets more expensive every year. But politicians have uncertain futures so

all their collections do not go to their parties and some is retained in their own accounts in

case they do not get party tickets and have to go it alone. This practice legitimizes the

amassing of personal wealth by every politician who despite often humble origins quickly

becomes seriously wealthy. The practice by every party is so openly known that it no longer

raises any eyebrows.

5. Conclusion

Contemporary Kenyan culture has contributed to endemic corruption plaguing

Kenya today. Cultural phenomenon such as materialism, tribalism and ethnicity, moral

relativity, prosperity gospel, gifting and reciprocity; have weakened Kenya’s natural

defenses against temptations of corruption. To undo the impact of shifting cultures, the

country needs to engage in sustained public discourse designed to highlight the impact and

cost of the vice as well as debunk the emerging world view that fuel corruption. This

combined with rigorous law enforcement and legislation; corporate governance and ethics;

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strengthening of internal controls in government institutions; will slowly but certainly

reverse the long match towards ruin that corruption brings.

References

Francesco Zinzaro, Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Francesco_Zinzaro

Dr P Lumumba, is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya

Jon S T Quah, Asian Journal of Public Administration Vol 25, No. 2

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