I have never paid a bribe my entire life, says Ichung'wah

National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah and Mehdi Hasan during Aljazeera’s Head-to-Head Show/SCREENGRAB

National Assembly Majority Leader and Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung’wah has swore that he has never paid a bribe his entire life.

Speaking during an interview with Ajazeera, Ichung’wah said he was once stopped by a traffic police officer for speeding at the age of 19, but he did not pay a bribe.

“I explained myself out of the situation. You never need to pay a bribe,” he stated.

A guest at the Head to Heads show had indicated that on a recent visit to Kenya, she witnessed low-level corruption on the Kenyan roads, allagedly perperuated by traffic police officers and drivers.

The woman said she witnessed traffic police officers take bribes along the roads. “My uncle who was driving said that officers commonly take bribes, and it happens all the time,” the woman said.

Ichung'wah, however, explained that it takes two to tangle, stating that there has to be a bribe taker and bribe giver.

He said police officers collect bribes on the roads because the motorists who give them the money are on the wrong.

“Maybe you’re speaking on your phone,” he added.

Ichung’wah went on to state the Kenya Kwanza administration is doing all it can to eradicate corruption.

“In the last two years, we have digitised 18,000 government services. You cannot digitise police officers manning roads, but it is possible to have instant fines so that you do not have to pay a bribe to get away,” he explained.

He further explained that it is the inconvenience an arrest brings that makes people pay bribes.

A survey conducted in Kenya in October 2023 showed that a traffic police officer is likely to ask for a bribe three times more than his administration counterpart.

According to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Survey 2023, traffic police, county health departments, and regular police are the three most bribery-prone public institutions.

"There is a likelihood that each time a service is sought in the Traffic police department, county health department, and in the regular police department, one is likely to be asked for a bribe 1.45, 1.05 and 1.02 times, respectively," the survey shows.