Azimio MPs Reject Five Cabinet Secretary Nominees

National Assembly’s Committee on Appointments is divided on President William Ruto’s cabinet secretary nominees.

Members of the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance coalition party is uncomfortable with five of the president’s nominees.

They are; former Meru Senator Mithika Linturi (Agriculture), Ms Penina Malonza (Tourism), Zacharia Njeru (Lands) and former Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa (Public Service), and former Central Bank of Kenya Governor Njuguna Ndung’u (Treasury and Planning).

Sources within the Azimio camp say the five are unsuitable for the positions and Dr Ruto should nominate other qualified Kenyans.

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“These nominees are not suitable to serve in the positions we vetted them for. If the committee will not agree with our view, we shall definitely draft our minority report,” an Azimio member of the committee told the Nation.

The Standing Orders allow committee members to voice a minority report or dissenting opinion on an issue that is before them. In essence, it is a protest letter by committee members against a vote that was cast by the majority. It is possible to include the dissenting viewpoint to the main report.

The committee has until Thursday to submit its report, which should either support or oppose the nominations, and have the House adopt it by November 3.

The committee report, however, will be presented today and discussed in the afternoon of the following day, according to the Notice Paper, which specifies all the business that will be before the House on a specific sitting day.

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Mr Linturi provided too much information that was not requested when he disclosed that he was involved in 35 civil matters.

He was also accused of deviating from key issues concerning his docket.

Kwanza MP Ferdinand Wanyonyi, a member of the committee, wondered where the former senator will get the time to work on the cases.

“He should clear his name first before we consider him for any nomination,” Mr Wanyonyi said during the vetting.

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On the nomination of Ms Malonza, a majority of the committee members agreed that she cannot be the face of Kenya considering her performance during the vetting.

“She is timid and lacks coherence for the docket she has been nominated, which is crucial in marketing the country to the outside world. Her evading of questions during the vetting exercise makes her appointment doubtful,” a committee member said.

The committee said that Mr Njeru lacked the knowledge and expertise needed to reform the ministry, which is essential to President Ruto’s plans for economic recovery.

On the other hand, Prof Ndungu is held accountable for allowing the Kenyan shilling to fall precipitously when he was in charge of CBK. In 2012, a report by a parliamentary ad hoc committee recommended Prof Ndung’u be fired for conspiring with financial institutions to generate “abnormal” profits.

Prof Ndung’u, however, refuted the allegations during his background investigation and said they were a part of a scheme to have him fired from CBK.