President Uhuru picks Makueni probe team

Kenya: President Uhuru Kenyatta has set in motion a process that could lead to dissolution of the troubled Makueni County Government and fresh election for all positions within the devolved unit.

The county government could be suspended and placed under an Interim County Management Board should the six-member Commission of Inquiry uphold the allegations against it and the President and Senate are in agreement.

If the steps are completed leading to the dissolution, Makueni County would become the first to have all its elective positions put back onto the ballot for voters to pick new occupants.

The law requires that Board shall comprise a chairperson appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate, not less than three, or more than five other members, and a certified public secretary appointed by the cabinet secretary responsible for inter-governmental relations.

According to the Constitution, the suspension is for a period not exceeding 90 days – beyond that fresh elections will be held – or until it is terminated earlier by the Senate.

During a period of suspension, the governor, deputy governor and members of the executive committee as well as the speaker and members of the county assembly shall retain half of their benefits.

President Kenyatta nominated lawyer Mohammed Nyaoga to chair the Commission of Inquiry, that will have five other members, who will determine the fate of the troubled county government.

Uhuru yesterday sent to the Senate the names of Nyaoga, and five others; chairman of the Police Service Commission Johnston Kavuludi, former Mombasa Mayor Taib Ali Taib, Mrs Emily Gatuguta, Prof Harrison Maithya and Alice Wairimu Nderitu for vetting, before they can start their sittings.

In what will be seen as an accelerated move to dispense with the matter, Senate Speaker Ekwee Ethuro committed the names of the six to the House Sessional Committee on Devolved Government, with direction that it must file its report to the House within 14 days.

Article 192 of the Constitution stipulates the procedure of suspension of a county government, laying out that this can be done in the event of an emergency arising out of internal conflict or war or in any other exceptional circumstances.

If approved by Senate, the commission will determine the grounds raised by the Makueni electorate who petitioned for the county's dissolution and if they find them strong enough as per Article 192 of the Constitution, then they will recommend the dissolution of the county government and report the same to the President.

It is then that the President will commit the report again to Senate for concurrence and once the House gives its nod, then the county administration will be dissolved.

 

In the event that Makueni County Government is suspended, Governor Kivutha Kibwana and the entire county administration, including the legislative arm of the county, bringing together all the Members of County Assembly (MCAs), would infamously go into the books of history as the first casualties of the dissolution of a county government.

Section 126 of the County Government Act stipulates that once a county is suspended, the President will form an Interim County Management Board until the suspension is lifted by the Senate, or an election held to reconstitute the county government.

Ethuro informed the House that Uhuru had, via a letter dated February 6 by the Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service, nominated the six to be members of the commission.

Consequently, Ethuro directed that the vetting of the nominees be expedited.

"In carrying out the vetting process, the committee must adhere to the provisions of the Public Appointments (Parliamentary Approval) Act," directed the Speaker.

Signed petition

Ethuro told the House that the process up to the appointment of the commissioners had followed the stipulations of the law, as the President had, after receiving the signed petition from the electorate of Makueni, committed the list for verification of signatures by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

"IEBC confirmed the veracity of the signatures annexed to the petition as indeed registered voters of Makueni County," Ethuro told the House.

He said the President had also submitted his report to the National and County Government Coordinating Summit, as stipulated in Section 7(1) of the Intergovernmental Relations Act, which had approved the report before it could be moved to the Senate.

Kibwana has been in collision path with county assembly members, a move that forced the Council of Governors to support the call by the governor to have the county government suspended.

In December, last year, a meeting of the national and county governments resolved that a commission be set up to investigate a petition by Makueni voters to send the governor and MCAs home.

Some 50,826 residents petitioned the president over the dissolution of the county. The petitioners argued that the MCAs were corrupt and were making it difficult for the regional government to operate.

The Council of Governors led by Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto also sought the president's intervention on the Makueni political impasse.

President Kenyatta urged residents of Makueni and the county government to explore all avenues of reconciliation "so that we do not set a trend that destabilises counties".

But Kibwana said all attempts at peace had failed and the people of Makueni "should be given an opportunity to elect a county government of their choice"