Maraga vows to fight corruption if elected president
Former Chief Justice David Maraga has vowed to fight corruption and ensure that the existing independent institutions are strengthened to perform their duties without undue influence.
Speaking during a live TV interview on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, Maraga observed that the institutions charged with fighting corruption in the country are hamstrung and arm-twisted.
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“I want Kenyans to trust me. I would strengthen bodies like the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and get them to prosecute those who have stolen from government coffers,” Maraga stated.
Hamstrung institutions
“We have the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, but they are hamstrung. Quite a number of their operations are hamstrung; they are arm-twisted. We have seen a number of public officers arrested, but then we don’t hear about their cases.
If I give a clear authority to those people and tell them that anybody who interferes with you, come back to me; I would take action against those interfering with those officers,” Maraga noted.
“I want to assure the institutions that are in place that they will have my backing as an individual and as their president, and I will make sure that they are not interfered with, they are given the independence they are entitled to, and they are given funding to prosecute cases.”
Maraga believes that prosecuting senior officials in the national and county governments would significantly reduce corruption cases in the country.
Fight against graft
Corruption is a key agenda item in the run-up to the 2027 general elections, with presidential aspirants promising to eradicate the scourge.
On July 1, 2025, former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i revealed his plans of fighting corruption should he be elected president in the 2027 general election.
Speaking during an interview, Matiang’i said that the problem with Kenya is not the lack of laws but the absence of accountability in public leadership.
“Nothing beats exemplary leadership. We talk more than we do in this country in terms of public leadership,” Matiang’i said.
“The fight against corruption ought to start with the individual leaders at the decision-making table. You cannot tell people to stop doing what you are doing yourself every day,” he stated.
“This is something all of us need to do because it is hurting our country, and it is going to destroy the prosperity of our young people, and in my view, you don’t even need to write a new law.”
