Ruto’s directive on transition of Uhuru-era officials was commendable
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta shakes hands with President William Ruto at the Moi International Sports Center, in Nairobi, Kenya, Sept. 13, 2022, during Ruto's inauguration.
By: Joseph Mutua Ndonga
Worth Noting:
- No CS is allowed to leave the country unless the visit is approved by the President. Besides, the CSs are not allowed to make appointments to plum state jobs.
- For me, this was a wise and commendable move. He clearly demonstrated that Dr Ruto cared for this country. We know in the time of transition that is when many bad things can happen.
- Chances were high that the outgoing officials particularly those, who did not see eye to eye with incoming President, would go into a state of panic. They would see this as the end of the road as they don’t know their future holds for them.
The moderator of the Rikuima-Ngoini, a morning show aired every day by Weega TV, has been inviting me to shed light on different matters of national importance.
The other day, he asked me. Is there law managing the transition of senior state officials of the outgoing government? I am asking you this question reports have indicated that some cabinet secretaries [CSs] and Principal Secretaries [PSs] were missing in action.
Some have never been seen to their offices since the outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta handed over the instruments of power to his successor, Dr William Samoei Ruto.
This was my response. While the provisions for the transfer of power to incoming President were very clear because they were anchored in the constitution, there was no written law to guide the senior government officials on the same.
We have however come from a background where it is assumed you cannot leave the office before the handing over.
Here, we need to agree on one thing. There existed a lacuna and this is one of the grey areas of our constitution that need to be reviewed.
As we know, some of the dockets such as National Security and National Treasury are very sensitive. For security, it is even more risky. Our enemies from within or outside the country can take advantage of the vacuum to hit at us. So, this is not a laughing matter.
For President William Ruto, this is matter that he would not take lightly. While on a working tour of United States of America [USA], Dr Ruto issued a directive asking the outgoing officials to stay in the office until when they hand over to their replacements. He also limited their movement and amount of money they can withdraw from their respective Ministries’ bank accounts.
No CS is allowed to leave the country unless the visit is approved by the President. Besides, the CSs are not allowed to make appointments to plum state jobs.
For me, this was a wise and commendable move. He clearly demonstrated that Dr Ruto cared for this country. We know in the time of transition that is when many bad things can happen.
Chances were high that the outgoing officials particularly those, who did not see eye to eye with incoming President, would go into a state of panic. They would see this as the end of the road as they don’t know their future holds for them.
Get me right here. I’m not insinuating that the outgoing officials were out to engage in activities aimed at sabotaging the work of the new government. This is because I have no evidence.
However, we must bear one thing in mind. The President is not an ordinary person like me and you. He receives the intelligence reports every morning. So, I am persuaded to believe Dr Ruto had good reasons when he issued the directive.
It is also worth to note. President Ruto has served the previous governments for many years. Therefore, he has a lot of experiences on how transition is managed.
As I conclude, I have a word for our lawmakers. Kenyans are looking upon you to address the grey areas of the constitution. Enactment of the laws to guide the transition involving the outgoing officials to incoming official is one area that ought to be given a priority.
The outgoing officials have nothing to fear or worry. The new president is on record assuring them that he does harbor ill-feelings against them and hence have no intention to revenge or subject them to witch-hunt. Dr Ruto is a God fearing man and so I have no reason to doubt him. He will keep his word.
Joseph Mutua Ndonga is a Political Analyst based in Nairobi
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