Blow to Governor Nyong’o as court stops vetting of Kisumu CEC nominees
Kisumu Governor Anyang' Nyong'o on Monday, October 24, suffered a setback after the Employment and Labour Relations Court stopped the vetting of 10 County Executive Committee Member (CECM) nominees.
Lady Justice Christine Baari directed that the nominations be halted pending the hearing and determination of a petition challenging the process.
The orders follow a petition filed by a Kisumu voter identified as Evans Otieno Oloo seeking to challenge the nominations on grounds that the governor failed to uphold the two-thirds gender rule.
"By dint of the said nomination, the said nomination will show that out of the ten (10) nominees seven (7) in permanent positions and three in acting position; only one position has been reserved for a woman thus breaching the requirement of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and the County Government Act 2012 (revised in 2020)," Court papers read in part.
The petitioner also argues that the county boss failed to consider special groups in the list of nominees released early this month.
"Out of the purported nominees, it is apparent that special groups and persons with disability have not been considered under the affirmative action in regards to the County Government Act, 2012 (revised in 2020) and relevant provisions of the Constitution of Kenya 2010," Oloo told the court.
In the petition, Governor Nyong'o is listed as the first respondent while Kisumu County Government and the County Assembly of Kisumu are listed as the second and third respondents respectively.
The governor sacked three CEC members on October 8 and unveiled seven names of people to serve in his Cabinet, in his second and last term in office.
Kisumu CEC nominees
The nominees are Gregy Ganda (Medical Services, Public Health and Sanitation), George Omondi Okong'o (Finance, Economic Planning and ICT), Kennedy Hongo (Lands, Physical Planning, Housing and Urban Development), Salmon Orimba (Infrastructure, Energy and Public Works) and John Awiti (Education, Technical Training, Innovation and Social Services).
Others are Ken Onyango (Agriculture, Fisheries, Livestock Development and Irrigation) and Farida Salim (Trade and Marketing). Salim is a former Roads CEC member and the only woman nominated to Nyong'o's Cabinet.
Nyong'o also picked Orimba, Okongo and Awiti to act in Water, Environment and Natural Resources; Public Service and County Administration; and Sports, Culture and Arts dockets respectively.
