- Activist Joseph Aura claims that the installation of Deputy President Kithure Kindiki was not procedural as per the law
- According to him, there was a public holiday legally gazetted for the deputy president’s inauguration at the Kenyatta Internation Convention Centre (KICC), Nairobi
- Despite acting Interior CS Musalia Mudavadi declaring a public holiday, the activist argues that he (Mudavadi) was not lawfully nominated to have such power
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Nairobi—An activist has moved to court challenging the legality of Deputy President Kindiki Kithure’s swearing-in.
Through lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui, activist Joseph Aura states that Kindiki’s inauguration was a sham because there was no lawfully declared public holiday on the day he took the oath.
The activist wants the court to quash Kindiki’s nomination and subsequent installation as the country’s third deputy president.
According to him, acting Interior Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi had no powers to declare November 1, the day Kindiki was purportedly sworn into office, as a public holiday.
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He argues that Mudavadi was not lawfully appointed as the Interior CS.
“Gazette Notice 14101 published on the night of 31st October 2024 by Hon. Musalia Mudavadi purporting to declare 1st November 2024 as a public holiday in Kenya without any statutory powers conferred on him under the Public Holidays Act, and having never Constitutionally ascended to, or been lawfully appointed as the Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Interior and National Administration Kenya in any capacity, breached Article 2(2) of the Constitution of Kenya”, said Aura in court papers.
He said that the events leading up to the questioned swearing-in were not transparent as Mercy Wanjau, the chairperson of the Assumption of the Office of the Deputy President Committee, also did not have powers to confer or declare November 1, a public holiday.
Aura accused Wanjau of committing illegalities by publishing a gazette notice at night.
“She purported to publish Gazette Notice No. 14100 (Vol. CXXVI- No.183) ostensibly assuming that 1 November 2024 was a public holiday and certainly NOT being the Minister”. Aura says that when the President realized this mistake, his office made frenzied efforts at night on 31st October to provide legal cover for Kindiki’s swearing-in,” the activist said in the court papers.
According to Aura, President William Ruto could not have nominated Mudavadi while attending a COMESA head of states’ meeting in Burundi
Mudavadi was therefore never appointed as acting CS Interior to declare November 1 as a public holiday, according to the activist.
Under Kenyan law, the assumption of the Office of Deputy President requires the declaration of a public holiday, an action that was not taken in this case.
This omission, according to Aura, renders the swearing-in ceremony illegal and unconstitutional.
The activist seeks several declarations from the court, including that Kindiki’s appointment as the deputy president was unconstitutional and that he should be prohibited from assuming any powers or duties associated with the office.
He contends that Kindiki did not even appear before the National Assembly after his nomination on October 18 and that no report was ever generated by the National Assembly as required under the Public Appointments (Parliamentary Approval) Act.
He also calls for a declaration that the National Assembly’s approval of Kindiki’s nomination as unlawful, both due to procedural flaws and the lack of public participation, a key requirement under the constitution.
The petition, which has garnered significant attention, emphasizes the need for transparency, public participation, and strict adherence to set Constitutional procedures in the appointment of high-ranking government officials.
Justice Bahati Mwamuye has since granted Kindiki, Ruto, former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua, Attorney General Dorcas Oduor, Chief Justice Martha Koome, National Assembly, Senate, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), and Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse until November 12 to file their responses to the lawsuit.
The case will be heard on December 16 this year.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
