All Ministers Elected to Various Positions in The March 4 General Election Ordered To relinguish their Cabinet Posts Immediately

President Kibaki has directed all ministers elected to various positions in the March 4 General Election to relinquish their Cabinet posts immediately. Below is a copy of the letter:

Pursuant to Article 126 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, His Excellency the President shall appoint a place and date for the 1st sitting of the new House which shall not be more than 30 days after the General Elections held on 4th March, 2013. On the first day of the sitting, the first Order of Business will be Swearing-in of members and election of the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Speaker of the Senate. The date of 1st sitting of Parliament is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, 28th March, 2013.

Under the new constitutional dispensation, one person cannot hold two State Offices. Indeed, all elected persons were contained in a Special Gazette Notice dated 12th March, 2013. In essence, this formalizes the appointment into the elective offices save for the swearing-in.

At the advice of the Hon. Speaker and the Attorney General, His Excellency the President has, therefore, directed that all Ministers and Assistant Ministers who were elected during the recent General Election to the positions of Senators, Governors, Members of the National Assembly or Women Representatives should resign, with immediate effect, so as to qualify to be sworn in by the Clerk of the National Assembly.

In this regard, Ministers/Assistant Ministers who did not compete or qualify for the said elective posts will remain in Government, until the swearing-in of the President and appointment of the new Cabinet Secretaries.

Secondly, your attention is drawn to the provisions of Article 134(2) of the Constitution forbidding the nomination, appointment or dismissal of State or Public Officers during the transition period referred to by the Constitution as the‘period of temporary incumbency’. Consequently, all appointments effected after the 4th March, 2013 are illegal and, therefore, null and void. The appointees and affected State Corporations should be notified accordingly.

Thirdly, by a copy of this letter, Permanent Secretaries/Accounting Officers have today been directed to:

(a) ensure that this directive is implemented immediately; and

(b) ensure, as earlier directed, that all major contracts and payments in excess of Kshs.500,000 are suspended forthwith. Any exemption to this particular directive must be sought from the Office of the President by the Accounting Officer on behalf of the Ministry or the State Corporation/Parastatal concerned.

Please give this matter your urgent and personal attention and confirm full and immediate compliance.

FRANCIS T. KIMEMIA, EGH
PERMANENT SECRETARY, SECRETARY TO
THE CABINET AND HEAD OF PUBLIC SERVICE

Copy to:

The Attorney General
Chairman, Commission for the Implementation of Constitution
All Accounting of Officers