Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo has come to the defence of legislators in the ongoing storm over alleged inducements tied to the passage of the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Terrorism Financing Laws (Amendment) Bill.

Speaking during a sitting on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, Amollo dismissed the claims as baseless and placed responsibility squarely on the Executive Office of the President, which sponsored the legislation.

The law, signed in June by President William Ruto, was meant to address gaps flagged by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and help Kenya exit the grey list where it was placed in February 2024. Allegations of MPs pocketing up to Ksh10 million each to back the Bill have, however, sparked outrage and dented public confidence in Parliament.

Amollo, a member of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee, declared his innocence.

“I have never sought or received any gain or advantage to support or oppose any bill, except as guided by the law, my conscience, and my constituents,” he said.

He insisted the House merely executed its duty in line with government direction, arguing that if there was corruption, “then that corruption can only come from the Executive Office of the President, because they are the ones who wanted it to pass.”

Parliament under pressure

The legislator reminded critics that rejecting the bill would have been a dereliction of duty.

“We were told that we needed to pass it to remove Kenya from the grey list. We complied, it came here, and it passed. Where is our fault? Should we have rejected it? Because if we did, then you could blame us,” Amollo said.

The row has since escalated after senior government leaders repeated the bribery allegations in public forums. MPs now say such statements put them at personal risk, with constituents viewing them either as secretly wealthy or corrupt.

Calls for integrity

Tetu MP Geoffrey Wandeto echoed Amollo’s frustration, warning that the image of Parliament as the temple of democracy was being undermined.

“An allegation of bribery against a member, especially the figures that are being touted, endangers us even as we walk the streets,” Wandeto said.

He urged Speaker Moses Wetang’ula to take decisive steps to defend the integrity of the institution.

Wandeto noted that the President, Deputy President, and the former Prime Minister had all fuelled the bribery narrative in recent weeks, creating a perception crisis for lawmakers.

“There is a lot of bribery and corruption going on in this House,” he quoted them as saying, adding that such remarks are of grave concern.

As investigations are called for, MPs maintain that the House acted within the law. The clash now threatens to overshadow Kenya’s efforts to exit the FATF grey list and casts a shadow on the country’s wider anti-corruption fight.