The Lands ministry is reshuffling its staff and digitising its services to combat corrupt cartels, PS Mariamu el Maawy said on Wednesday, as the government steps up the acquisition of land for ambitious infrastructure projects. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International has long ranked the Lands ministry as one of the most corrupt institutions in Kenya, where citizens have to pay a bribe to get served. The Directorate of Criminal Investigation in August started probing the source of wealth of ministry staff, some of whom own valuable properties despite earning modest salaries, according to local media reports. El Maawy said the ministry will block access to those who want to misuse land documents. Lands ministry staff will no longer be able to tell Kenyans their file is lost, she said, a common ploy to extract a bribe.

Source: The Star October 13, 2016 05:26 UTC