The Fountain magazine Issue 04, August 2016

6 7
LEGAL MATTERS
Sometime not too long ago
while I was pursuing my law
studies in campus, I spent some
time in the library trying to “find
the law”, as they say in law school.
While at this pursuit which would
have earned me the approbation
of any conscientious teacher of
the 21st century, I came across an
LL.B dissertation from 2003 by one
student whose name I remember
well was Nellie. Recently my eyes
caught a short interview with a
young achiever in one of the dailies,
and it was this same person. She
had graduated with a doctorate 10
years down the line and secured
a teaching job in the UK. For this
reason if not any other, you can be
sure her piece was worth the read. It
was entitled “Kenya Anti-Corruption
Commission; the panacea to the
vice?” The budding researcher went
on to give a detailed analysis of the
anatomy of corruption in Kenya
dating back to pre-independence
times. She further went on to
examine the legal and institutional
infrastructure that then was in place
to respond to corruption – this was
very scanty. She concluded that
those who conceived the idea of the
KACC were in deed heaven sent, it
was the country’s real hope.
You will readily recall that it was
about the year 2003 that the Kenya
Anticorruption Commission was
formed. Its establishment was
greeted with an almost palpable
sense of hope that at last the country
was on a steady path to effectively
dealing with the monster that
is corruption. Hitherto, corruption
had straddled the national landscape
like a colossus – unhindered,
unbowed, unmoved and unchecked.
Our short independence
history was littered with major
scandals most prominent of which
was the Goldenberg scandal of the
TEDDY Onyango GIVES YOU Insights on corruption and its panacea
1990s. The powers that then were
presided over corruption eyes, ears
and mouth closed - as though it
was national heritage! For these
reasons and more, the formation
of the Commission heralded a new
dawn.
THIS MAN, ZACHEAUS!
Let us consider this man Zacheaus.
Inspiration permanently captured
his moving story in the book of
Luke, the Chapter is 19. Ellen
White says in that timeless book –
“Education”1905, that these things
were written “not that we may
merely read and marvel, but that
the same faith may be seen in us.”
The Bible
tells
us that
Zacheaus
was chief
of the tax
collectors,
it further
specifically mentions that “he was
rich”. Well, my friend Joe reminds
me that we must read the Bible
“with a scientific mind and a forensic
eye”. That the scriptures spare
space to mention Zacheaus as
rich really means that he was just
that, rich! A quick internet search
confirmed to me that this class of
Jewish citizens, also called “tax
farmers” were indeed fabulously
rich. In modern times,
they would have easily made it to
Forbes’ Ranking of World’s richest,
from Israel.
Tax collectors were
hated by the Jews because
they represented
subjugation to Roman
authority – willing
instruments of foreign
oppression. This
greatly irked
Jewish pride and their
great sense of exclusive nationalism,
especially for the fact that they
boasted of God’s great promises to
Abraham as asserting their superiority
over other heathen nations.
For this reason, tax collectors were
classed in the same category with
prostitutes.
That the Bible records that Jesus ate
with tax collectors was a sign that
he had welcomed their fellowship.
In so doing, Jesus went against the
prevailing social norms, for which
he incurred the enmity of the leaders
and suspicion of the people. But
none of this could divert him from
his mission, He came to seek and
to save that which was lost (Luke
19:10)
The real ‘Githongo’
In Zacheus Jesus saw a heart that
was susceptible to divine influence,
a heart that though outwardly it
appeared as hardened and excluded
from all grace and religion, was
inwardly craving for a higher, a
deeper and a better experience.
It was to answer to this call that
Jesus made his way through Jericho.
We can almost picture in our
imagination that multitude of people
that eagerly throng his footsteps as
the procession makes its winding way
through the streets of Jericho,
the people are speaking in excited
tones. They are probably speculating
the events to unfold at his next scene
of action. I can imagine a few are
trying to convince their unbelieving
friends to bring their sick and
dying to this great Teacher, what’s
more, they are beginning to wonder
whether he could be the promised
and long awaited Messiah. But
this thought they cannot entertain
too long, his puritan and spartan
lifestyle walking with a small band
of unlearned fishermen from Galilee
does not tally with the prevailing
picture, at least not as painted by the
scribes and teachers of the law. Theirs
is a picture of a glorious Messiah
coming to preside over the throne of
David with awful majesty and almost
celestial splendor, and who will make
Israel’s enemies her footstool.
LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS
You need not be a lawyer but you
will easily appreciate that remarkable
efforts have been made to
fight corruption in this country. To
demonstrate this, one need not go
any further than the Constitution
of Kenya 2010 which devotes an
entire chapter to Leadership and
Integrity. These provisions are the
precursor to the new look Ethics
& Anticorruption Commission
whose establishment was
punctuated with much hue and cry,
that our politicians had watered
down the enabling statute. This
country has passed at least six Acts
of Parliament to deal with corruption
and allied offences. I will tell
you this is a high number for one
matter needful of regulation. It all
goes to show our commitment to
fight the vice, or in the alternative,
the pervasiveness of the vice!
A BETTER DEAL
An encounter with Jesus turned
Zacheaus’ life round, literally. Beholding
his highly unlikely guest,
the rich man perceived in Him love
that made the very person of his
being gravitate towards a higher
ideal. This ideal was exemplified in
his guest. Beneath that calm dignified
look in Jesus was also a heart
of tender pity and undying love for
men like Zacheaus, men for whom
he had traded the worship and adoration
of angels to walk the dusty
paths of earth. He had given up the
atmosphere of joy and love for the
cruel hatred of Pharisees who were
inspired by the very spirit of the
arch rebel. A catalogue of virtues,
no matter how complete would but
mechanically portray the excellences
resident in Zacheaus’ Chief
Guest of the day. He was the very
majesty of Heaven, God’s best gift
to man’s greatest need, even Immanuel
– God with us! He who had
called him by name and bid him
“make haste, come down, for today
I must dwell in your house.”
(Luke 19:5)
THE REAL TZAR
While our country has taken commendable
steps in setting up a
legislative, policy and institutional
framework for combatting corruption,
which sadly does not show
commensurate results in arresting
the vice, I posit to us, Jesus is the
real anti-corruption tzar. The problem
is certainly greater than meets
the eye, the government may deal
with the symptoms, Jesus alone can
and does squarely deal with the
cause.
The Bible and the Bible only gives
a correct account of the genesis of
this condition, which is to be found
in the tragic story of the fall of man
in Genesis 3. The prophet Jeremiah
squarely places a finger on the
condition of the human heart as
no other religion does; “The heart
[is] deceitful above all [things],
by TEDDY ONYANGO
An FoC member since its inception, and a
young lawyer by profession.
and desperately wicked: who can
know it?”- Jer. 17.9. Equally, the
Bible alone provides the antidote
to the corruption of the human
heart, inviting all to “Behold the
Lamb of God who takes away
the sin of the
world”- (John 1:29). And while
men refuse to acknowledge Him
as the creator and supreme superintendent
of the universe, they
unwittingly welcome a cruel tyrant
whose only aim is to dishonor God
and to cause misery and destruction
to men.
The Fountain magazine | Issue 04 - august 2016 The Fountain magazine | Issue 04 - august 2016