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Human Rights Commission issues more demands to Ruto after dissolution of cabinet

The commission says a purge is necessary for the entire state and public service system

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by JAMES MBAKA

News11 July 2024 - 16:53
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In Summary


  • The Commission further wants all the principal secretaries (PSs) to be sacked.
  • The Commission said every nominee for the new cabinet must be of impeccable integrity, as required by Article 73 of the Kenyan constitution.
President William Ruto at State House on July 11, 2024

The Kenya Human Rights Commission has issued some demands to President William hours after he fired cabinet secretaries.

The President on Thursday dissolved his entire cabinet save for the Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.

The move has drawn a mixture of reactions from Kenyans across the country with many commending the President for the bold action.

The commission said that the President is responsible for putting the CSs he fired in office.

KHRC wants Prime CS Mudavadi removed from office immediately.

"He occupies an office that cannot be redeemed through the National Dialogue Committee (Nadco) report. Additionally, Mudavadi has reached the age of 60, and Ruto himself stated last week that anyone reaching this age must transition," KHRC said in a statement.

The Commission further wants all the principal secretaries (PSs) to be sacked.

According to them, the entire state and public service system requires a thorough purge.

"An audit of capacity and integrity across the public service must be conducted, and new vetting and mandatory wealth declaration processes must be implemented," the Commission said.

The Commission stated that efforts must be made to blacklist and lustrate those responsible for violations and abuses before and after the August 2022 general elections.

They asked Kenyans to start preparing to recall MPs who backed the Finance Bill, 2024 and those involved in other constitutional violations.

The Commission said the dissolution of the current parliament must be pursued with urgency.

"There is no time to waste, Ruto’s new cabinet must be capped at 14 members per the constitution, with at least two-thirds being women. It must also include a fair number of youth and persons with disabilities, with genuine representation of Kenya's ethnic diversity," the KHRC added.

"The persistent exclusion and marginalisation based on ethnicity, gender, and other biases must end. This inclusive governance must extend to county levels."

The Commission said every nominee for the new cabinet must be of impeccable integrity, as required by Article 73 of the Kenyan constitution.

"The vetting process must be rigorous and transparent, avoiding the sanitization acts of the current parliament, which was co-opted and compromised, rendering it untrustworthy."

The Commission said it is time for the government to deliver development to Kenyans and end the blame game.

The Commission further said they reject the proposal for a public dialogue saying it is an unnecessary waste of public resources and opportunities.

"As witnessed in last year's Nadco and previous public engagements, these processes are regime tactics designed to buy time and prevent people from advancing their quest for truth and justice in the mismanagement of public affairs," the statement reads.

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