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John Githongo, the former private advisor to President Mwai Kibaki on issues of governance and ethics, denied accusations from critics that he failed to deliver on the anti-graft war because he had personalised it and failed to share the information widely in government.
"The truth of the matter is that the information that was in my possession was never mine alone. There was no sparing of anyone. I reported to one person (President) but the information was not mine alone," he told civil society activists at a conference here.
The former ethics and governance chief, who was a Permanent Secretary, said he had tried hard to deliver on the government's pledge of zero tolerance to graft.
He blamed Kenyans for the never-ending culture of corruption, saying: "The kind of corruption that has the kind of political impact like we are seeing is cooked by us, the genesis of these are here at home."
Githongo investigated ministers in President Kibaki's government over corruption allegations but failed to see the ministers brought to the courts over a multi-million dollar scandal, which nearly brought Kibaki's government down.
The Anglo-Leasing scandal, which involved the alleged payment of millions of dollars to non-existent firms in Europe, continued to haunt the Kibaki presidency.
Githongo later earned the title of the corruption high-priest and fled to London in 2005, nearly two years into Kibaki's presidency, fearing for his life.
When he arrived Nairobi Tuesday night, he was received in an emotional ceremony and later met Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who had sent him an open plea to have him assist in the efforts to end corruption.
Speaking during a Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) conference here Wednesday , Githongo called for an end to the culture of impunity, corruption and inequity , saying these were the ills facing the Kenyan society.
"Accountability is a challenge that cannot be ignored. Equity is the primary out come that our government is unable to see, given the current system," he said.
He said access to government jobs for all Kenyans, regardless of tribal affiliation and the failure to fight corruption, usually blighted by the tendency to protect tribal interests were part of the crises facing Kenya in its efforts to end g raft.
"This perception is more powerful and this is true where corruption is concerned ," he said.
Meanwhile, the civil society activists have challenged the government to show its commitment to the war against graft.
Gladwell Otieno, who replaced Githongo as the executive director of Transparency International, said the authorities in Nairobi were still willing to pay Ksh53 billion in promissory notes that were supposedly owed to bogus suppliers.
She said impunity was still a worrying trend in Kenya.
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