Police, KRA officials top list of corrupt professionals in new national survey

President William Ruto inspects a guard of honour during a past Police Constables pass out parade, Kiganjo, Nyeri County. (Photo: NPS)

By Mary Wambui
Tuesday, August 5, 2025

Chiefs (16.2 per cent), County Inspectorate Officers (14.6 per cent), and lawyers (14.1 per cent) rounded off the top five professional groups reported to be mostly involved in unethical practices and corruption.

The 2024 National Ethics and Corruption Survey (NECS) has ranked police officers (27.6 per cent), Kenya Revenue Authority Officials (17.3 per cent), chiefs (16.2 per cent), County Inspectorate Officers (14.6 per cent), and lawyers (14.1 per cent) as the top five professional groups reported to be mostly involved in unethical practices and corruption.

They were closely followed by County Revenue Officers (13.4 per cent) and land surveyors (13.3 per cent).

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This means that, although every professional is involved in corruption, the above fields received or demanded the most bribes in the country, as bribery was the most prevalent form of corruption in the country.

Teachers (24.5 per cent), journalists (22.8 per cent), university lecturers (19.4 per cent), bankers (16.6 per cent), doctors and nurses (13.9 per cent) and economists (13.5 per cent) were reported as least involved in the same.

The Survey sought to assess the involvement of different professionals in unethical practices and corruption, as well as the level of satisfaction with public services in Kenya.

It also sought to identify national government ministries and departments/agencies, as well as county government departments and services, that are perceived as being most prone to unethical conduct and corruption in the country, and found that one is more likely to encounter such practices and corruption.

The Ministry of Interior and National Administration (47.8 per cent), followed by the Ministry of Health (19.7 per cent), the National Treasury's Pensions Department (5.8 per cent), while the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development ranked at (4.7 per cent) and the Ministry of Education at (4.1 per cent) topped in this category.

"A majority of the respondents (71.9 per cent) were either very dissatisfied or dissatisfied with integrity, transparency and accountability in public service delivery in Kenya, while merely 14.5 per cent were either very satisfied or satisfied," the survey findings revealed.

The respondents who indicated either very dissatisfied or dissatisfied with integrity, transparency and accountability in public service delivery in Kenya cited high levels of corruption (25.1 per cent), poor service delivery (12.5 per cent), poor leadership full of false promises and rampant favouritism in public service as some of the major reasons for their dissatisfaction.

On the other hand, the respondents who indicated either very satisfied or satisfied with integrity, transparency and accountability in public service delivery in Kenya cited improved service delivery (42.5 per cent), digitization of services (7.5 per cent), action being taken on corrupt individuals (6.6 per cent) and robust anti-corruption laws/measures in place (6.3 per cent) as some of the mains reasons for their satisfaction.

The survey adds that national government services most prone to bribery, corruption and unethical conduct include: obtaining a tender; Teachers Service Commission placement; resolving land matters; and seeking employment in government agencies.

While the most affected services in the counties are health, especially curative health care, county inspectorate, public works and county service board, especially on employment.

"Here, bribes are mainly demanded since it's the only way to obtain the service. Unfortunately, most corruption and unethical conduct incidents go unreported," the survey adds.

The majority of the Kenyans (73.6 per cent) were found to receive information on unethical practices and corruption through the Radio, followed by Television (64.6 per cent), social media (32.6 per cent) and by word of mouth.

The 2024 survey covered 5,960 households across all 47 counties, using a blend of quantitative and qualitative methods, including face-to-face interviews and literature review. Data was collected between November 6 and December 1, 2024.