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Ruto adds LSK's Odhiambo, Amnesty's Houghton to protest victim compensation taskforce
President William Ruto appointed Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo to deputise committee chairperson, Prof Makau Mutua.
President William Ruto on Tuesday appointed a 14-member panel of experts to facilitate compensation of victims of demonstrations.
In a gazette notice, Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo will deputise the earlier appointed committee chairperson, Prof Makau Mutua.
Other members of the panel include Kennedy N Ogeto, human rights defender Irungu Houghton, Dr John Olukuru, Rev (Fr) Kennedy Barasa Simiyu and Linda Musumba.
Other members are Dr Duncan Ojwang’, Naini Lankas, Dr Francis Muraya, Juliet Chepkemei, Pius Metto, Fatuma Kinsi Abass and Raphael Anampiu.
The President appointed Mr Richard Barno as the technical team lead and Mr Duncan Okelo Ndeda as co-technical lead.
Also, the President named Jerusah Mwaathime Michael and Dr Raphael Ng’etich as the Joint Secretaries.
The panel has been mandated to design and establish an operational framework to verify, categorise and compensate eligible victims, to engage with relevant stakeholders, including families of victims, State institutions mandated to address human rights issues, civil society organisations, and religious institutions to ensure inclusivity and fairness in the compensation process.
It will also authenticate data on eligible Victims from authoritative sources, including the Independent Policing Oversight Authority, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, the National Police Service, the Ministry of Health, and civil society.
Additionally, the President said that where evidence so warrants, the panel will recommend reparations, prosecutions or other appropriate accountability measures to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and other relevant oversight bodies.
It will also propose legislative and institutional reforms to address protests and culture of policing; and prepare and submit to the President periodic progress reports and a final report.
The panel will have powers to access information and records from any State organ or public office, subject to law.
"Provided in accordance with the Public Finance Management Act and any other applicable law, utilising auditable payment channels; and the Panel shall ensure transparent accounting, maintain records sufficient for an independent audit, and publish anonymised statistics and progress updates," the notice reads.
