Effect of Leadership Accountability on Perceived Levels of Corruption in the Procurement Department in the Judiciary of Kenya

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of leadership accountability on perceived levels of corruption in the procurement department in the judiciary of Kenya. The study utilized the concurrent triangulation design and targeted a population of 278 heads of procurement committees in 278 court stations of the Kenyan judiciary and key informants from six oversight organizations. From this population, a sample of 164 heads of procurement committees was selected using the stratified proportionate random sampling technique. Quantitative data was collected from the heads of procurement committees using questionnaires while qualitative data was collected by interviewing 12 key informants that were purposively selected from the six oversight organizations. The study found that leadership accountability has a statistically significant and negative effect on levels of corruption in the procurement departments in the Kenyan judiciary. Based on the findings, the study concludes that leadership accountability reduces levels of corruption in government procurement. The study recommends formulation of laws, policies and strategies aimed at improving the accountability of leaders in government procurement departments.