Kenyans may have to wait until mid week for Cabinet nominees

President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto (on Uhuru’s right) when they met with permanent secretaries from the ministries of Special Programmes, Housing, Roads, Education, Agriculture, Medical Services, Public Health and Finance at State House, Nairobi, recently

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto face a huge test as they prepare their Cabinet — the team that will lead implementation of their coalition’s ambitious manifesto.

Eleven days since the two leaders were sworn into office, the Cabinet list remains a matter of high political speculation and intense lobbying, with indications that the president’s aides and allies have been sworn into silence or cut off from information.

On Saturday, Mr Ruto told a congregation at the opening of Winners’ Chapel, a church on Mombasa Road, that the Cabinet would be “all-inclusive with people of honour and integrity that will satisfy all Kenyans”.

He said President Kenyatta was unable to attend the function but was “busy crafting the Cabinet” and that he had sent him to the function to convey a message of hope and inspiration that the country was poised for greater things.

He urged Christians to pray for the nation and the new leadership to realise the desired changes.

Part of the reason that the names of the nominees to Cabinet have not been released is that the committee in the National Assembly that would scrutinise and vet the nominees is yet to be formed.

Additionally, the Public Service Commission is yet to complete the demanding task of sifting through the more than 1,500 applications from people interested in becoming Principal Secretaries, the new name for Permanent Secretaries. The Public Service Commission is expected to submit a list of names from which pool the President will pick nominees for PS jobs.

Under the new Constitution, Cabinet Secretaries are nominated by the President from those he may wish to have on his team but must be approved by Parliament before they are appointed to office.

Cabinet Secretaries shall be the heads of the ministries and shall be accountable to the President while PSs will be the accounting officers.

After President Kenyatta has completed his list of nominees, he will dispatch it to House Speaker Justin Muturi who will then transmit it to the House Committee on Appointments for scrutiny.

The Committee on Appointments will present a report on the nominees to Parliament where MPs will vote to approve or reject part or the entire list of nominees.

House Majority Leader Aden Duale told the Sunday Nation the House Business Committee would meet on Tuesday morning to consider the names of those who would sit on the Committee on Appointments.

“We expect to take that list to the House on Tuesday afternoon and have the committee in place by Wednesday. The infrastructure of Parliament will then be ready for the Cabinet nominees by the President,” Mr Duale said.

That would mean that even if the President were to name his nominees before the Committee on Appointments is in place, the list would still have to await scrutiny and approval as the House rules stipulate.The 28-member Committee on Appointments will be chaired by National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi and will include his deputy and the Leaders and Deputy Leaders of the Majority and Minority in the House. The Speaker will have no vote.

Yesterday, Minority Leader Francis Nyenze told the Sunday Nation the nominees will be subjected to thorough scrutiny.

“The Cabinet must reflect regional balance, be people of integrity, people who haven’t been involved in any corruption and people who have demonstrated competence in various fields,” said Mr Nyenze.

He said the committee would be on the lookout for “non-performers and recycled leaders”.