Court urged to revoke President Kenyatta’s parastatal appointments
By Agnes Oloo, Citizen Digital, published on 2 August 2016 on Citizentv.co.ke
A lobby group has moved to court seeking to have parastatal appointments by President Uhuru Kenyatta declared unconstitutional.
Katiba Institute and Africa Centre for Open Governance said the president’s actions and that of his Cabinet Secretaries were unlawful, adding that they had no legal authority to make such decisions and appointments.
The Institute Director and United Nations Special Rapporteur Yash Pal Ghai said the president acted beyond his powers in making the appointments and encroached on the powers of the Public Service Commission (PSC).
On June 24, 2016, President Kenyatta effected various changes in the composition of 28 state, corporations appointing 23 people to serve as chairperson’s of various management boards.
He also nominated former CS Kazungu Kambi to the National Government Constituency Development Fund, subject to vetting and approval by the Parliament.
In March, Uhuru also appointed Katwa Kigen chairman of the Unclaimed Assets Authority for three years, while Mathew Iteere was appointed chairman of Nyayo Tea Zones Development Authority.
The two bodies now claim that the continued and frequent appointments to state corporations and agencies are an affront to the constitution and the rule of law that justifies urgent intervention by the court.
He seeks a declaration that the appointments to various state corporations and agencies by the President and Cabinet Secretaries of 11 and 18 March 2016 are unconstitutional.
According to the court documents, the petition seeks to nullify appointments to state corporations and further seeks to have the Attorney General review all the laws relating to the appointments of chairpersons and board members of state corporations that are unconstitutional and to bring them to the attention of Parliament for amendment or repeal.
Ghai, through lawyer Waikwa Wanyoike, said on various dates since 2013, the president and cabinet secretaries made appointments for chairpersons and members of state corporations and agencies, which he says were made in violation of the law.