President William Ruto has consistently spoken about his commitment to fight corruption, but the actions of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions under Renson Ingonga tell a completely different story.
Since Ruto came into power, the DPP has moved with speed to drop several high-profile corruption and criminal cases involving the President’s allies, raising serious questions about the independence of the office and the state’s commitment to justice.
What is being witnessed is not just the normal use of legal provisions, but a pattern that signals a deliberate attempt to protect powerful individuals while undermining accountability.
The first clear sign was the withdrawal of the Sh7.4 billion graft case against former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. Gachagua had been charged with six counts, including money laundering and fraudulent acquisition of public property.
His accounts at Rafiki Microfinance Bank were under scrutiny, with investigators alleging that he received billions through questionable means between 2013 and 2020.
But not long after Ruto’s administration settled in, Ingonga’s office moved to terminate the case, citing lack of evidence.
This excuse painted investigative agencies as incompetent while conveniently freeing a key ally of the new regime. Magistrate Victor Wakumile openly criticized the habit of charging people without evidence, yet this also exposed how weakly the cases had been handled, leaving Kenyans to wonder whether the withdrawals were engineered rather than genuine.
The DPP did not stop there. In October 2022, Aisha Jumwa’s Sh19 million corruption case was dropped just as she was being considered for a Cabinet position. She had been charged with conspiracy to defraud public funds, conflict of interest, and money laundering. Her co-accused remained on the charge sheet, but Jumwa walked free, courtesy of the DPP’s intervention. The timing made it clear that political survival mattered more than justice.
Mithika Linturi, another Ruto ally, was also spared after his rape case was terminated. The court was told that the complainant had withdrawn the charges, but many Kenyans viewed the outcome as another example of the system bending in favor of those close to power.
Similarly, Moses Lenolkulal, the former Samburu Governor accused of siphoning Sh84.6 million through fuel contracts, nearly had his case withdrawn until public pressure forced the DPP to reverse course.
Even Kenya Power’s former CEOs Ben Chumo and Ken Tarus had their Sh400 million graft charges dropped on the same grounds of insufficient evidence.
The repeated use of Section 87A to justify these withdrawals has turned Ingonga’s office into a shield for political elites rather than a guardian of justice.
The Law Society of Kenya quickly pointed out the contradictions, asking why people had been charged in the first place if evidence was lacking.
Lawyers and governance experts have since argued that Ruto’s much-publicized war on graft is nothing more than empty talk, especially given his own statement that corruption does not hinder development. Ingonga’s role in systematically dismantling corruption cases tied to the ruling class has cemented public suspicion that his office serves political interests, not the rule of law.
This trend has left ordinary Kenyans disillusioned. If allies of the President can walk away from serious charges while ordinary citizens are punished harshly for minor offences, then the promise of equality before the law becomes meaningless.
By turning the DPP into an office of withdrawals, Ingonga has betrayed the constitutional responsibility of impartiality and fairness. Instead of building public trust, he has deepened the perception that justice in Kenya is for sale, available only to the powerful.
The real danger is that such decisions not only weaken anti-corruption institutions but also normalize impunity. When powerful figures evade accountability, it signals to the public that corruption pays, and that connections matter more than the law. For Ruto, the continuous protection of his allies will forever taint his legacy on governance.
For Ingonga, history will remember him not as a defender of justice but as the prosecutor who perfected the art of withdrawal to protect the mighty.
