Cabinet Secretary (CS) nominees Mutahi Kagwe, Lee Kinyanjui and William Kabogo will face a National Assembly vetting panel today (Tuesday, January 14).
Kagwe, the Agriculture and Livestock Development CS nominee, will be the first to face the panel starting 12:00 pm, at the Mini Chamber, 1st Floor, County Hall, Parliament Buildings.
ICT & Digital Economy CS nominee Kabogo will be the second to face the panel starting 3:00pm at the same venue, while Lee – the Investment, Trade and Industry CS nominee – will have his approval hearings at 5:00 pm.
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula will lead the Committee on Appointments in the approval hearings.
Members of the public were requested to submit their memoranda by way of written statements of Oath (Affidavits), with supporting evidence in case they are contesting the suitability of any of the three nominees.
Although the deadline for submitting the memorandums was on January 3 by 5 pm, the Nation reports that the views were still streaming in by Monday, January 13, as Parliamentary employees racing against time to compile them and determine those that will be forwarded to the committee.
Kagwe, Lee and Kabogo are close allies of Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta, with pundits insinuating that their appointment came after President Ruto closed ranks with Uhuru.
Who is Mutahi Kagwe?
In 2002, Mutahi Kagwe became the MP for Mukurweini Constituency when he won the seat on a National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) Party ticket.
In 2005, then-President Mwai Kibaki appointed Kagwe as the Minister of Information, Communication and Technology.
In 2013, Kagwe became the first senator of Nyeri County when he won the seat on a NARC Party ticket.
In 2017, Kagwe tried to run for the Nyeri gubernatorial seat on a Jubilee Party ticket, eventually losing to Dr Wahome Gakuru in the party primaries.
He was appointed Health CS and assumed office on February 28, 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Who is William Kabogo?
Kabogo first because the MP for Juja Constituency in 2002, when he clinched the seat on a Sisi kwa Sisi Party ticket.
In 2007, Kabogo lost the seat to George Thuo of Party of National Unity. However, Kabogo successfully petitioned the election results, with the seat declared vacant on 16th April 2010.
In the subsequent by-election, Kabogo trounced Thuo by a landslide on a Narc-Kenya Party ticket.
In 2013, he successfully contested for the Kiambu gubernatorial seat, becoming the county’s pioneer governor.
In 2017, Kabogo lost the gubernatorial seat to Jubilee Party’s Ferdinand Waititu. In 2022, his efforts to recapture the gubernatorial seat failed again, this time to UDA’s Kimani Wamatangi.
Who is Lee Kinyanjui?
Lee Kinyanjui entered into politics when he captured the Nakuru Town Constituency MP seat in 2007.
In 2013, he vied for Nakuru County’s gubernatorial seat, losing to Kinuthia Mbugua. In 2017, Kinyanjui tried his luck and this time, he trounced Governor Mbugua in the Jubilee primaries, securing the crucial party ticket. In August that year, he was elected as the second governor of Nakuru.
In 2022, he lost the seat to UDA’s Susan Kihika.
