Six nominees to the Kisumu County Public Service Board will be sworn in today.

Kisumu chief magistrate Julius Ngarngar will preside over the ceremony that will be overseen by Governor Anyang Nyong’o.

On April 17, MCAs unanimously approved the six nominees picked by Nyong’o.

The nominees are board chairman Charles Karan, and members Jacinta Kapiyo, Stephen Orot, Edward Kochung, Nashon Aluoka and Jane Oyare.

A report on the proposed board nominees was tabled in the assembly by Labour and Social Welfare Committee chairperson Beatrice Odongo. 

Odongo told the assembly the committee was convinced on the suitability of all the nominees.  She said the nominees met the requisite educational and constitutional requirements.

She, however, said the committee was concerned that representation of youth and people with disability was lacking in the governor’s appointments. 

The members said the constitution of the board would be a reprieve for the county in terms of employment.

Majority leader Kenneth Onyango said the delay in making board membership had derailed key operations in the county. 

Kolwa East MCA Steve Owiti urged the new board nominees to maintain a high level of integrity when they take office. 

He told them to learn from the mistakes made by their predecessors. 

Owiti asked the nominees to work diligently to deliver their mandate while avoiding over-employment. 

Nominated MCA Aslam Khan said all the requirements on appointments were put into consideration in proposing the nominees. 

Kisumu West MCA Paul Okiri said the absence of the board members had led to stalling of a lot of services.

Okiri said the county faced a shortage of manpower because it could not employ in the absence of the service board. 

The board nominees appeared before the committee for vetting between April 2 and 3.

Their nomination elicited mixed reactions from residents. Some wanted the list rejected because former Nyakach MP Peter Odoyo was omitted.

Odoyo had been proposed as board chairman.