Fearing, and concerned for her health, the emotional Ms Waiguru said she had taken the decision on the advise of her doctor.
The beleaguered CS, who has scooped various awards, said the war against graft had turned out to be attacks on her.
Following her doctor’s advise, Ms Waiguru said she had asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to relieve her of her duties at the ministry.
“I have therefore following my doctor’s advice, who is siting next to me, requested his Excellency the president to relieve me of the responsibilities of the Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and Planning and should he find it fit, to accord me such lighter duties as he shall deem appropriate,” she said, as she fought shedding tears.
“I wish to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the President for giving me an opportunity to serve in this critical ministry, the team at the ministry that has made my work easier and the many Kenyans who have supported me in this difficult time,” she added.
She outlined the achievements the ministry she has led since 2013 has made before announcing that the experience at the State office had caused her great pain as well as her family.
'ORGANISED ATTACKS'
Her health, she said, has also been affected and thus due to her poor condition as a result of constant attacks on her person and family, she had decided to throw in the towel.
“Though the experience has had a devastating effects on my health, it has not killed my spirit,” said the CS.
She blamed her woes on a “frenzied but organised attack on my character” which she said begun the moment she unearthed the theft of funds at the NYS.
“A diabolical machinery has been applied incessantly by misinformed and mischievous parties to intimidate, harass and discredit both my professional and personal integrity, anything and everything has been fair game including attacks on my children,” she said.
And while turning her guns on politicians, she added, “some politicians with dubious characters and a litany of misconduct allegations also joined the fray to achieve nefarious intentions”.
Ms Waiguru however admitted that mistakes were made with some officers in some departments and agencies abusing their discretion and misappropriating public funds.
“ I sincerely regret these occurrences and trust that the relevant government agencies will conclude their investigations and bring these matters to a speedy conclusion,” she said.
And as her critics mounted pressure every day on her to leave office over rife corruption in her ministry, her supporters painted her as a victim of her success.
In July, the embattled CS ruled out stepping aside over the National Youth Service (NYS) scandal.
Speaking on Citizen TV, Ms Waiguru said people do not step aside because they have been told to do so on the street.
“How can they ask me to step aside when I blew the whistle? I’m the one who called CID,” said the CS, adding that just because an organisation has been touched by corruption doesn’t mean that its head must resign.
Ms Waiguru during the live TV show, also denied claims that she is a "super Cabinet Secretary"; that is, the most powerful CS in government.
She also rejected allegations that she is arrogant and pushy.
“In my line of work, one is bound to rub some people the wrong way. This is often the cause of these allegations,” said Ms Waiguru said then.
Her decision comes weeks after she vowed not resign castigating those calling on her to leave office while at the same time, refusing to take responsibility for corruption in her ministry.
She pegged her defence on the arguement that she was not involved in accounting for the ministry.
She defended her self both in public, before parliamentary committees and through proxies.
On her Facebook and Twitter pages, she told Kenyans that she does not hold the office of accounting officer nor was she have authority to incur expenditure.
SOURCE: DAILYNATION
