Uhuru picks team to drive agenda for his final term

President Uhuru Kenyatta eventually ended his long delay in forming his Cabinet by nominating a 21-member line-up Friday.

On the 59th day since he was sworn in, President Kenyatta named a team of 15 men and six women he believes will enable him leave a legacy under the four-point agenda that he has identified as ensuring food security, providing affordable housing, universal healthcare and encouraging industrialisation.

By naming his full Cabinet – only one name short of the constitutional limit of 22 – Mr Kenyatta also ended speculation that he could accommodate the Opposition, whose leaders have been clamouring for dialogue and inclusivity.

The appointments came on a day the Opposition National Super Alliance (Nasa) declared that its leaders, Mr Raila Odinga and Mr Kalonzo Musyoka won the August 8 presidential election.

The announcement was in preparation for their Tuesday’s swearing-in ceremony, which the government has declared to be both illegal and treasonous. The two are to be sworn in as the people’s president and deputy, respectively.

In naming his new team, he said he intended to form “a government that I believe will serve the interest of all Kenyans, be a representative of all Kenya and continue to work for the prosperity, peace and stability of our nation”.

Following the unveiling of the new line-up for President Kenyatta’s final term, the big winners were the CSs who will be directly responsible for the Big Four agenda. They are Mr James Macharia of Transport and Infrastructure, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri, who has been moved from Devolution to Agriculture, Ms Sicily Kariuki, who will now head the Health Ministry and Mr Aden Mohammed, who has been retained at the Industrialisation Ministry.

The President also ended speculation about which of his CSs would be retained and who would be dropped. Among those who stay on is ICT CS Joe Mucheru and former Water and Irrigation CS Eugene Wamalwa. Now, however, he will be in charge of Devolution and the development Asal areas. This is a key docket as he will be the point of contact between the national and devolved governments as well as the northern Kenya regions which are both arid and marginalised.

OIL REVENUE

Also retained was Mr Charles Keter. However, he will lose the key petroleum docket which has been hived off and taken to Mining, which will now be held by former Turkana Senator John Munyes. The move is likely to placate the people of Turkana County where the sharing of oil revenue between the national and county government has been a bone of contention.

National Treasury CS Henry Rotich and his Tourism counterpart, Mr Najib Balala, have been retained in the same capacities.

The powerful Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government will be headed by Dr Fred Matiang’i, while Education where he brought about major reforms, will now be handled by Ms Amina Mohamed, the outgoing Foreign Affairs CS.

President Kenyatta also tried to meet the two thirds gender rule which requires that no one gender be more than two thirds in a government institution. However, with six women out of the 21-member team (28 per cent), he fell short by one woman. The Constitution allows the President to appoint 22 Cabinet Ministers, so he still has the opportunity to meet the gender threshold. Earlier this week, women held a demonstration in Nairobi to demand that the gender rule be respected when the Cabinet is unveiled.

OMAMO RETAINED

Besides Ms Mohamed and Ms Kariuki, the other women nominated are Ms Raychelle Omamo who was retained in Defence; the former chairperson of the Public Service Commission, Prof Margaret Kobia, who was nominated as the CS for Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs; outgoing Foreign PS Monica Juma who will be the substantive CS; and veteran journalist Farida Karoney who will be in charge of Lands.

Together with Ms Karoney, the other new entrant in the Cabinet was Mr Rashid Achesa, who will be in charge of Sports and Heritage, a docket left by Mr Hassan Wario, who now becomes an envoy.

President Kenyatta also kept to the tradition he started in 2014, of having a mixed bag of politicians and technocrats in the Executive.

Among the politicians who lost in the last election, but on Friday found themselves in the Cabinet, were former Meru governor Peter Munya, who was nominated the CS for East African Community Affairs and Northern Corridor Development, former Marsabit Governor Ukur Yattani (Labour and Social Protection), and Baringo senatorial aspirant Simon Chelugui (Water). The Jubilee Party Secretary-General, Mr Raphael Tuju was also co-opted to the Cabinet but was not given a portfolio.

NEW POSITION

The other politicians are Mr John Munyes (Petroleum) as well as former MPs Ababu Namwamba, Rachel Shebesh, Abdul Bahari and Patrick Ntutu who were all appointed to the new position of Chief Administrative Secretary.

Also benefitting from the new position is former Tana River governor Hussein Dado, who was appointed CAS Devolution. The no-nonsense Coast Regional Coordinator Nelson Marwa will be the pioneer CAS in the Ministry of Devolution and Asal areas.

The creation of the position is widely seen as an easier avenue for rewarding most his lieutenants who were promised a slot in his cabinet during the campaigns.

In creating the new position, President Kenyatta said the Chief Administrative Secretary would “broadly be responsible for helping the Cabinet Secretary to better coordinate the running of the affairs of their respective ministries.”

POLITICAL PUNDITS

However, the position was largely seen by political pundits as signifying the return of the position of Assistant Minister which was traditionally used to reward political cronies. It is instructive that all those so far named to this position are politicians.

Keen to calm the storm that would have ensued had he dropped his CSs without giving them a soft landing, posted all the ministers he didn’t retain to ambassadorial positions (see separate story on page 6).

On receiving the news yesterday, former Director of Public Prosecutions Mr Keriako Tobiko, who was named to head the Environment and Forestry docket, said he was ready to serve in the portfolio.

“The portfolio fills me with great pride and zeal, given the advances that we have made in this country; including the monumental plastic ban and forest cover increase among other milestones,” he said.

Meru Governor Kiraitu Murungi welcomed the appointment of his predecessor and former political rival, Mr Peter Munya and thanked the President for having kept a promise he made during the campaigns for the October 26 presidential election to appoint Mr Munya to a national position.