The Head of State gazetted the appointment of the CSs, thus formally appointing them to serve in his broad-based Cabinet.
19 of the 20 Cabinet Secretaries nominated by President William Ruto now stand appointed, following their approval by Parliament on Wednesday, August 7.
The Head of State gazetted the appointment of the CSs, thus formally appointing them to serve in his broad-based Cabinet.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by Article 152 (2) of the Constitution, I, William Samoci Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, appoint [the following] to be Cabinet Secretaries of the Government of the Republic of Kenya,” the gazetted notice read in part.
President William Ruto signs the Supplementary Appropriations Bill into Law at State House in Nairobi. /PCS
Among those formally appointed include Kithure Kindiki (Interior), Debra Barasa (Health) Alice Wahome (Lands), Julius Migos Ogamba (Education), Soipan Tuya (Defence), Andrew Mwihia Karanja (Agriculture), Aden Duale (Environment), Eric Mugaa (Water), Davis Chirchir (Roads) and Margaret Ndung’u (ICT).
Others were John Mbadi (Treasury) Salim Mvurya (Trade), Rebecca Miano (Tourism), Opiyo Wandayi (Energy), Kipchumba Murkomen (Sports), Hassan Joho (Mining), Alfred Mutua (Labour), Wycliffe Oparanya (Cooperatives) and Justin Muturi (Public Service).
However, the nomination of Stella Lang’at for the Gender Ministry docket was rejected. In a 243-page report, the National Assembly Committee on Appointments revealed that Lang’at had failed to demonstrate adequate knowledge of topical, administrative and technical issues touching on the portfolio to which she had been nominated.
Furthermore, Lang’at was revealed to have lacked the requisite abilities and qualities to be approved for appointment to the highly publicized docket.
The rejection was also informed by deep concerns regarding her suitability for the role, with frequent job transitions also playing a part in a perceived lack of in-depth understanding of the gender docket she was nominated to run.
Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, in representation of the views of the committee, further cited Lang’at’s career trajectory consisting of multiple short-term roles, thus her failure to demonstrate the stability and strategic vision necessary for a high-level ministerial position.
The committee’s report was in agreement with Ichung’wah’s findings that Lang’at’s wielding of experience in roles that range from Director of Administration at the State Department of Housing and Urban Development to Senior Deputy County Commissioner in Nyamira rendered her unfit to take the helm of the Gender Ministry.
“The result of this frequent role-switching is a lack of grounding in any one area of leadership,” Ichung’wa elaborated, adding “Moreover, the nominee struggled to demonstrate an adequate understanding of the administrative and technical issues crucial to the ministry she was set to oversee.”
President Ruto will have to nominate another individual to the CS post for the Gender Ministry to replace Aisha Jumwa who spearheaded the Ministry before she was dismissed on July 11, along with 21 CSs when the Head of State dissolved his entire Cabinet 27 days ago.
Those approved will be sworn-in on Thursday, August 8 at State House, Nairobi from 9 am, according to a media invite by State House Press Secretary Emmanuel Talam, in defiance of a wave of planned protests to sweep the capital city.
