Eldoret’s transition to city status has run into headwinds after a petition challenging the appointment of the City Board accused county officials of bypassing public scrutiny and flouting the law.
A fierce battle for control of Kenya’s newest city is unfolding as citizens and activists take to the courts to block what they claim is an illegal power grab in the appointment of its inaugural City Board. At stake is the legality, transparency, and credibility of the new leadership of Kenya’s fifth city.
At the heart of the dispute is the reappointment of Mr Julius Kitur as Chairperson of the Eldoret City Board, just a year after the town was elevated to city status. The appointment is now being challenged over the legality and transparency of the recruitment process.
The newly constituted City Board is expected to oversee key urban functions, including infrastructure development, solid waste management, revenue collection, and the delivery of quality services that align with Eldoret’s new city status.
But the appointments now face a legal challenge after a petition was filed in the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Eldoret seeking to suspend the recruitment and require a fresh process in line with the law.
Eldoret was granted city status in August 2024, and this marks its first major governance test.
What was meant to be a milestone in urban development has turned into a legal and political storm, after the Uasin Gishu County Public Service Board reappointed Mr Kitur as chairperson of the City Board for a seven-year term, a move that has triggered accusations of illegality, backroom deals, and disregard for public participation, and is now being challenged in court.
Mr Kitur previously served as Chairperson of the Eldoret Municipal Board for ten years before the town was elevated to city status in August 2024.
The petitioner, Mr Moses Kiptum Kibor, wants the appointments suspended pending a full legal review, which could derail the onboarding of the new city leadership team.
“Pending hearing and determination of this application inter partes, a conservatory order be issued suspending the vetting and approval of names of individuals appointed as the Chairperson and Board members of the City of Eldoret,” stated Mr Kibor in the court documents filed through Tarigo Kiptoo & Company Advocates.
Uasin Gishu Governor Jonathan Chelilim Bii was expected to preside over the swearing-in of the new City Board, which also includes Ms Alice Kositany, Ms Ruth Limo, Paul Chemmuttut, Mr David Maise, and Mr Sammy Bor, the Executive Secretary of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Chepkoilel branch. But the legal challenge is likely to delay the process.
Residents argue that the selection process of the City Board Chairperson and members was flawed, non-transparent, and in breach of both the Constitution and key urban governance laws.
The petitioner, through Tarigo Kiptoo & Company Advocates, has named the County Public Service Board, Governor Bii, and the County Assembly of Uasin Gishu as respondents in the suit.
The controversy comes barely a month after Elzeba Busienei was sworn in as the new city manager, replacing Mr Tito Koiyet, whose term expired four months ago.
Lady Justice Maureen Onyango has certified the case as urgent and scheduled an inter partes hearing for September 30, 2025, next week.
The controversy has heightened tensions in Eldoret, where residents are already grappling with a 300 per cent increase in water tariffs by the Eldoret Water and Sanitation Company (Eldowas) and ongoing complaints about poor solid waste management.
According to the petitioner, the recruitment process failed to follow the procedures outlined in the Urban Areas and Cities Act, which requires that the Chairperson be elected by Board members at their first meeting and that the nominee be forwarded to the County Assembly for vetting.
“The recruitment process should recommence afresh in strict compliance with the Constitution of Kenya 2010, the Urban Areas and Cities Act, County Governments Act, Fair Administrative Action Act, and the City Charter Act, including a public and transparent criterion,” argued lawyer Tarigo.
When President William Ruto conferred city status on Eldoret on August 15, 2024, he called on local leaders to embrace accountability and service delivery.
“As the city of champions, it is essential that Eldoret focuses on the greater opportunities and significant challenges ahead, because it takes what it has to emerge as the ultimate city of the future,” President Ruto said during the charter award ceremony at the Eldoret Sports Club.
Eldoret is the fifth city in Kenya, joining Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, and Nakuru.
