• He claimed that as the current situation stands, the Assumption of the Office of the President Committee, if constituted today, would not have a chairperson.
• Duale said that the Act clearly defined the leadership of the Committee to be headed by the Secretary to the Cabinet, and conferred upon the Chairperson with specific functions.
Image: STEPHEN ASTARIKO
Garissa Township MP Aden Duale has urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to name the Secretary to the Cabinet in accordance with Article 141 of the Constitution which provides for the swearing-in of the President-Elect.
Duale said on Monday that there is no person holding the office of the Secretary to the Cabinet in terms of Article 154 of the Constitution, a position that has been vacant since Energy CS Monica Juma was exited the office.
“The time is fast ticking and I do hope that the relevant bodies will move with speed and put in place the leadership of the Committee,” Duale said.
He claimed that as the current situation stands, the Assumption of the Office of the President Committee if constituted today, would not have a chairperson.
“A President-Elect for this year's general election shall be sworn in on the First Tuesday following the 14 days after the declaration of the presidential election results if no petition will be filed; or the 7 days following the date which the court renders a decision,” Duale said.
He continued:
“The Assumption of the Office of the President Act No.21 of 2012 which provides for the procedure and ceremony for the assumption of office of the President-Elect establishes and constitutes the Assumption of the Office of the President Committee.”
The MP said that the committee is mandated under section 6 to facilitate the handing over process by the outgoing President to the President-elect, the provision of security detail and security briefings to the President-Elect among other key functions.
“The problem is that section 5 of the Act which provides for its composition provides that the Chairperson of the Committee shall be the Secretary to the Cabinet and consist of 19 other members including Principal Secretaries drawn from various Ministries, the Chief of Kenya Defence Forces, the Inspector General of the National Police Service and the two Clerks of Parliament among other members.”
Duale has further stated that whereas one may want to argue that a vacancy in the Committee may not affect the decisions of the Committee, the Act defines the leadership of the Committee to be headed by the Secretary to the Cabinet, and conferred upon the Chairperson with specific functions.
“What is even more worrying is that should the President decide to appoint a Secretary to the Cabinet, the person must upon nomination by the President be approved by the National Assembly in accordance with Article 154 of the Constitution.”
He said the challenge comes as the National Assembly is currently on recess, and will resume on May 9, and shall continue in session for only 4 weeks before it finally goes to sine die.
“What this means is that there are only 4weeks left for a Secretary to the Cabinet to be appointed. If this is not done, the assumption processes for the next President-Elect may be jeopardized and negated with no leadership to govern the Committee.”