'Ruto overruns gov't institutions... I refused to do deals,' ex-Treasury CS Ndung'u says

Speaking at a forum in Sweden on July 1 titled "What Aid Can Do and Cannot Do," Prof. Ndung'u said strong institutions, rather than individuals alone, are key to fighting corruption and addressing poverty. 

The former Cabinet Secretary, who now serves as a lecturer and researcher, made the remarks while responding to a question on tackling corruption in development corporations.

Ndung'u argued that corruption is fundamentally an institutional problem because it diverts resources meant for the public and distorts the economy.

"Poverty is an institutional problem. Corruption robs what could have been used by the populace. When you distort the structure of the economy because of corruption, that's where we go wrong. That's why when I talk about capacity building, it's not only at the individual level but also at the institutional level because we need to uphold the rules of the game," he stated.

He contrasted the current administration with the tenure of former President Mwai Kibaki, during which he served as Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), saying institutions were better protected and corruption was publicly confronted.

"I served as CBK Governor under President Mwai Kibaki, and all of a sudden, there was no talk about corruption because the few corruption cases that came, even before they were taken to court, there was naming and shaming," Ndung'u stated. 

"That capacity is there to do the right thing, but it is covered by the institutional failure problem because somebody wants to overrun the institutions."

The former Treasury CS claimed that President Ruto's leadership approach discourages public servants from acting independently.

"Right now, the current President overruns the institutions, and that's why everyone in those institutions will have to conform for fear. But I refused to do deals in the Ministry of Finance. I can't do them. It follows you to your grave; it doesn't go away with the regime. It's only capacity at the individual and institutional level that gives you the courage to say no because you know it will follow you," he stated.

Ndung'u served as Treasury Cabinet Secretary from October 2022 until July 2024, when President Ruto dissolved the Cabinet following nationwide anti-government protests and later reconstituted it.

Since leaving office, he has returned to academia and has occasionally spoken on governance, economic policy and institutional reforms.