'Waste of public resources': Lobby joins push against 50 CASs

A lobby group has urged a three-judge bench to quash President William Ruto’s appointment of 50 chief administrative secretaries, saying their inclusion into the government will lead to wastage of public funds.

Multi Touch International, a non-governmental organisation which has joined in the case, told justices Kanyi Kimondo, Hedwig Ong'udi and Aleem Visrfam that allowing the 50 CASs to assume office will be a big burden to taxpayers, given the economic recession and the high cost of living.

The petitioner noted that the Kenyan taxpayer is already heavily burdened.

"That the office expenses and support staff of one CAS inevitably be more than Sh3 million per month and thus a very high possibility of employing more personnel," the lobby group, through lawyer Matwere Asiyo, told the bench.

The court heard that the Kenya Kwanza administration has increased the number of CAS's by 27 without any justifiable cause.

"The government has not demonstrated any incapacitation of service delivery of the existing 23 CASs and has neither provided their professional credibility and acumen of the extra proposed CASs in relevant appointments to warrant anticipated enthusiasm to apparently take Kenya to the next level," the petitioner stated

He added that the appointment of the 27 will eat up resources which would have been used to create employment for the youth, 68 per cent of whom have no jobs.

"That only heaven knows where the next level Kenya will be going forward is with a critically high youth unemployment rate and a growing recession," the petition states.

Further, the judges heard that the salary of a single newly appointed CAS will be at least Sh765,188 per month, which the organisation said would have been used to employ 50 youths at Sh15,000 per month, each with lunch.

The lawyer also said the appointment of the said CAS's is a mockery and an injustice to the millions of desperate youths and other taxpayers.

He said the appointment of the CASs by President Ruto should be reversed and consequently terminated, and their pre-determined salaries and packages cancelled. He also urged the court to redirect the funds to various government agencies to enable them to employ more youth.

The lobby group said that in January 27, 2006, it presented a concept to the late President Mwai Kibaki’ office of a programme to create one million jobs for the youth in the country per year.

The concept suggested the creation of 300,000 jobs for the mega crop irrigation project at the expansive Tana River territories, now Galana Kulalu, and another 300,000 job through reclamation of desert and arid land.

The lobby group has the support of the Law society of Kenya, Katiba Institute and activist Eliud Matindi, urged the bench to declare the appointments unconstitutional.

LSK President Eric Theuri told the judges that the appointments are illegal so the court should intervene. According to him, the nominations and the intended appointments are riddled with unconstitutionality.

Mr Matindi noted that the Public Service Commission (PSC)  proposed, and the President accepted, the creation of only 23 positions of the office of CAS.

“The recruitment process carried out by the PSC was on the basis of there being 23 vacant positions," Matindi told the court

The petitioners further accused the PSC of  failing to discharge its constitutional mandate, including its duties under Articles 10, 232, 234 and 249 of the Constitution, by facilitating and superintending over the creation of the additional 27 posts. 

Additionally, the Kabita institute, through lawyer Dudley Ochiel, informed the court that the PSC failed to undertake public participation and stakeholder engagement before establishing the 27 new positions.

The petitioners further accused the National Assembly of failing to vet the CASs before they were sworn-in.

Currently, the CAS's have been barred from assuming office or drawing salaries, allowances from the exchequer pending determination of the suit.

Earlier, the court directed parties opposed to the petitioner's case to strike out pertinent issues in the suit and raise them in their substantive replies to avoid multiplicity of rulings in the case.

This was after CAS Evans Kidero sought to have more than 10 paragraphs in the pleadings by Katiba Institute expunged from the record, saying the issues raised would be prejudicial to their appointment.

Through lawyer Jotham Arwa, Dr Kidero told the judges that some of the people adversely mentioned in the pleadings, like Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, are not parties in the suit and have no opportunity to defend themselves.

The hearing continues.

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