A group has moved to court seeking to block the inclusion of four leaders from ODM party to be part of President William Ruto’s new Cabinet.
The Executive Director of Commission for Human Rights Julius Ogogoh says the nomination of the four will have a negative effect as their subsequent appointment will disable the opposition from discharging its oversight role on the operation of the government.
Ruto on Wednesday week picked John Mbadi, Hassan Joho, Opiyo Wandayi and Wycliffe Oparanya to form part of his new look Cabinet.
He designated ODM Chairman Mbadi as Treasury CS and Minority Leader Wandayi for Energy, Joho as Mining and Oparanya for Cooperatives Development.
Their names have since been forwarded to the Speaker so that their names can be considered and approved by the National Assembly for their appointment as cabinet secretaries.
Ogodo in his petition before court says Azimio and ODM being the opposition have Constitutional and parliamentary duty to offer checks and balances and in particular to oversight the actions of the government.
Some of those nominated are chairing the Public Investment Committee and Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly.
“Should any member of the parties forming Azimio coalition be nominated and successfully appointed into the cabinet, the opposition in the national assembly stands to be conflicted,” says Ogogoh.
Through advocate Nicholas Kamwendwa, the commission states the four have a constitutional duty to oversight the function of the executive and other arms of the government.
He explains that their nomination and appointment into the cabinet shall conflict with their constitutional duty bestowed upon the opposition party by the people of Kenya and the Constitution to oversight the government and to provide checks and balances.
They want the court to suspend the nomination of the four for appointment as Cabinet Secretaries.
Also sought is an order restraining the four from accepting their nomination for appointment as cabinet secretaries.
They further want the court to issue an order blocking the speaker of the national assembly from receiving any communication and transmitting the names of the four to Parliament for their vetting and consideration for nomination for appointment as cabinet secretaries.
“If successful, there shall be no presence of opposition in the National Assembly. There shall be no checks and balance and the executive and other arms of the government shall not be accountable to the people who delegated trust and obligation to serve,” he adds.
The petitioner explains that the end result shall bring about wastage, non-accountability and lack of accountability as the government shall not be accountable to any of the organs of the national assembly.
He maintains that their inclusion is insensitive and unnecessary to the economic times the country is undergoing since it will automatically occasion by elections in their respective places
Those sued are Azimio la Umoja, Orange Democratic Party, Speaker of National Assembly and the Attorney General.
