Little was known about ICT guru Davis Chirchir until President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed him as his chief agent in the 2013 presidential election.
His name featured prominently in the election petition that ensued after Raila Odinga’s Cord side drew his name into its fights with the IEBC over claims of poll rigging.
The IT guru would survive the onslaught and was among the technocrats President Kenyatta picked in his maiden Cabinet.
Uhuru appointed Chirchir as the Energy and Petroleum Cabinet secretary, the same position to which he has been nominated by President William Ruto.
Chirchir has been Ruto’s ally for years and was named Chief of Staff in the office of Deputy President following the death of Ken Osinde.
If his nomination as Energy CS is approved by MPs after Monday's vetting, the former CS will be in charge of important energy entities.
They include the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA), Kenya Power, Ketraco, Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation, the Nuclear Power Agency and Geothermal Development Company.
He will also superintend the National Oil Corporation, Kenya Pipeline Company, Petroleum Development Fund and Kenya Petroleum Refineries.
His recruitment comes amid alarm about skyrocketing fuel and electricity prices. and opaqueness about Kenya’s oil production prospects.
During Uhuru’s term, Chirchir held the Energy docket for two years but was dropped in 2015 on the advice of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission.
The EACC cleared him of the graft allegations in 2020. Charges against Ben Chumo, who was his co-accused, were also dropped by the Director of Public Prosecutions last Wednesday.
Chirchir holds a Master's in Business Administration in International Management from the Royal Holloway School of Management, University of London.
He also holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Physics from the University of Nairobi.
Before he was named TNA chief agent, Chirchir served at the now-defunct Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) from May 2009.
He started his career at the Kenya Posts and Telecommunications Corporation, which is the modern-day Telkom Kenya.
Chirchir is credited for Jubilee’s successes in the 2013 and 2017 general elections where Uhuru defeated Raila, emphasising his credentials as a political operative.
Ahead of the 2022 general elections,he was appointed the Chief of Staff at the Office of Deputy President William Ruto.
Between 2011 and 2013, Davis worked as the secretary general for the United Republican Party (URP).
(Edited by V. Graham)