Disquiet has rocked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as political appointees take over as Kenyan envoys.
Career diplomats have almost been overlooked since Jubilee rode to power in 2013. The Star has established only five career diplomats have been posted as ambassadors in six years. Insiders claim the arrangement has sank the Kenyan diplomatic influence.
President Uhuru Kenyatta has dished out ambassadorial jobs to political losers, retired state officers and failed civil servants. Sources say the political appointees snubbed a six-week training organised by the ministry. They feel only answerable to Uhuru. “What would you expect? Somebody is a cabinet secretary today and they are pushed out and named Ambassadors reporting to another CS,”a source told the Star.
Early this year, Uhuru sacked seven CSs who served in his first term and appointed them as ambassadors.They include Cleopa Mailu, Dan Kazungu, Phylis Kandie, Hassan Wario, Willy Bett and Judy Wakhungu. The Star has established Kandie, a former Labour CS, who was nominated and vetted as the Belgian envoy, has been swopped with Kaimenyi.
There are claims Brussels rejected her appointment, claims Foreign Affairs PS Macharia Kamau denied. “That is a misconception. She was never rejected. She was found to be more appropriate in the new station. When you deploy ambassadors you try to fit them for the purpose where they are going,”Macharia, a former envoy to the United Nations, told the Star.
Kandie was eventually appointed as the permanent representative to Unesco, Paris, a job that had been given to Kaimenyi. Last month, Uhuru again rewarded political losers and some civil servants who had been kicked out of office.
Among those named envoys include former CID director Ndegwa Muhoro (Malaysia), former Kasipul Kabondo MP Paddy Ahenda (Qatar) and former Ainamoi MP Benjamin Lang’at (Namibia). The unease in the Foreign Affairs ministry has been escalated by the delay in promotions that spurns seven years.
Macharia termed the concerns of stagnation of career diplomats as legitimate and promised the ministry is working on it. “Indeed there were delays [in promotions] for seven years. It’s true there were promotional issues. It’s also true we need to manage the deployment of career ambassadors,” he said.
The Foreign Service Regulations state career ambassadors who have been recalled from their stations abroad should be re-posted utmost after two years. Some ambassadors have been waiting for 10 years.