The corruption nightmare in Kenya has been exposed to millions of Americans after a prominent public broadcaster ran a documentary titled "How widespread corruption is hurting Kenya".
PBS on Monday aired the 10-minute documentary narrated by correspondent Nick Schifrin, highlighting the exent to which corruption is ailing the country.
The report starts with the plite of Hillary Kiplimo, an athlete who finished third in last year's Standard Chartered Marathon in Nairobi, but did not receive his prize money of about Sh350,000.
Instead, his name was changed with that of one Julius Korir Kiplimo, despite being awarded a medal. The struggling athlete alleges that the money vanished in the hands of Athletics Kenya officials who oversee professional athletics events in the country.
Though not new to many Kenyans, the documentary sheds light on police extortion of businessmen in Eastleigh, Nairobi, a region an interviewee says is an 'ATM' for the law enforcers.
The story also features the Eurobond scam, in which it was reported that the government could not account for over Sh100 Billion from the fund.
A former Treasury employee, Alex Owino, who was a whistle blower in the saga tells Schiprin that there was a scheme to steal a billion dollars.
"It is almost brazen, when you look at it, it is almost like a smash and grab heist," he said.
"The corruption we have now poses an existential risk to Kenya. Before, we stole from ourselves. Now, with the Eurobond, we are mortgaging the futures of our children," says John Githongo, a former Permanent Secretary and an anti-corruption activist also interviewed.
Also featuring in the documentary is one Daniel Mwirigi, who explains how tables turn on whistle blowers when they raise the red flag on graft.
Mwiriri narrates that he lost his job after investigating corrupt dealings at Post Bank where he discovered that the bank's bosses were defrauding Western Union transaction.
He says that the senior officers framed him, claiming he was a culprit in the same crimes he had pointed out.
The documentary is part of a series airing on PBS titled, Inside Kenya, which also revealed that Kenyan Al Shabaab fighters are treated unfairly in the militia group forcing some to flee.
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Here is the documentary courtesy of PBS:
[video:]
