President William Ruto has sacked his cabinet today.
This decision comes after weeks of relentless protests led by young Kenyans demanding the ousting of corrupt officials and holding this regime accountable for the severe hardships it has inflicted on the country.
But this was Ruto’s mistake, and he needs to own up—he appointed an incompetent cabinet that lacked integrity.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) makes the following uncompromising demands:
- Chief Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, whom Ruto spared, must be removed immediately. He occupies an illegal office that cannot be redeemed through the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report. Mudavadi has reached the age of 60, and Ruto himself stated last week that anyone attaining this age must transition.
- All principal secretaries (PSs) must be sent home. The entire state and public service system requires a thorough purge. An audit of capacity and integrity across the public service must be conducted, and new vetting and mandatory wealth declaration processes must be implemented.
- All those responsible for the ongoing atrocities, including outgoing ministers and current security chiefs, must be prosecuted. Those still serving must be ousted. Efforts must be made to blacklist and lustrate those responsible for violations and abuses before and after the August 2022 general elections.
- Kenyans must start preparing to recall MPs who backed the Finance Bill, 2024 and those involved in other constitutional violations. The dissolution of the current parliament must be pursued with urgency. There is no time to waste.
- Ruto’s new cabinet must be capped at 14 members per the constitution, with at least two-thirds being women. It must also include a fair number of youth and persons with disabilities, with genuine representation of Kenya's ethnic diversity. The persistent exclusion and marginalization based on ethnicity, gender, and other biases must end. This inclusive governance must extend to county levels.
- Every nominee for the new cabinet must be of impeccable integrity, as required by Article 73 of the Kenyan constitution. The vetting process must be rigorous and transparent, avoiding the sanitization acts of the current parliament, which Ruto co-opted and compromised, rendering it untrustworthy.
More transgressions
KHRC has not forgotten the injustices committed by the Kenya Kwanza regime, led by president Ruto, against our young Kenyans who protested Finance Bill, 2024. This led to Ruto's statement on July 5, citing various austerity measures and other actions to ostensibly address the crisis, which was insufficient.
Ruto also convened another meeting on July 9, which led the opposition and other political leaders to explore an elite consensus on the current developments.
These actions came amid numerous statements issued by civil society organizations, the latest being from the Okoa Uchumi Coalition, of which KHRC is a part, calling for more than just the firing of the cabinet.
But Ruto’s many policy pronouncements continued to be are riddled with contradictions and lack of action. On July 5, 2024, he committed to "support all those affected" by the protests, yet very little support has materialized.
He also indicated he would "always take public contributions in good faith, applying them to enrich policymaking and governance" while simultaneously profiling protesters as criminals to be dealt with, and abductions and arrests spread across Kenya.
Ruto further claimed that "we are finally having the right conversation, not about our tribes, personalities, or political formations, but rather issues that affect each and every one of us," while blaming foreign forces for organizing and supporting the protests.
Additionally, Ruto made public declarations accompanied by unconstitutional and irregular proposals. These included the proposal to reduce the number of advisors or postpone the appointment of Cabinet Administrative Secretaries (CASs) rather than scrapping them altogether. Again, Ruto's appointment of a task force to audit public debt conflicted with the auditor general's mandate.
However, KHRC agree with some proposals that require more diligence and prudence, such as withdrawing the Finance Bill, 2024, scrapping budgets for the offices of the president's, deputy president's, and Cabinet Secretary's spouses, and the latest dissolution of the cabinet.
Still, KHRC is careful not to let these latest developments distract us from other critical justice and governance issues. Therefore, we demand that Ruto must do the following:
1. Conduct his office in a manner befitting the edicts of Article 73 of the Constitution on leadership and integrity. According to this article, a state officer is obliged to bring honor to the nation and dignity to the office, promote public confidence in the integrity of the office, ensure honesty in the execution of public duties, and be accountable to the public for all their decisions and actions.
2. End executive fiat and impunity by upholding the sovereignty of the people, the supremacy of the Constitution, and the rights and dignity of Kenyans always. Article 129(2) of the Constitution states that executive authority derives from the people of Kenya and shall be exercised in line with the Constitution and “in a manner compatible with the principle of service to the people of Kenya and for their well-being and benefit.” Ruto, listen to the aspirations of the people.
3. Admit the blunders and misgovernance orchestrated by his regime despite the many promises made during the 2022 campaigns. Stop the blame games and buck-passing and offer guarantees against repetition.
4. Stop extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and other threats to those involved in the protests. Foster human rights-centered governance in line with Article 19, which decrees the Bill of Rights as the basis of making public policies. As per Article 238(1)(c) of the constitution, it is time to banish the punitive, repressive policing culture.
5. Establish a framework for accountability for those culpable and effective support and remedies for those affected by state-instigated violations. Redress should align with the UN Guidelines on the rights to reparations for gross human rights violations and international humanitarian laws.
6. Scrap the offices of chief advisors, CASs, and offices of the first ladies, including at the county level. These are unconstitutional and wasteful positions. CASs and advisors are merely ploys to reward cronies when we have adequate, underutilized, seasoned career public servants.
7. Address the rampant looting of public funds by privileged state and private sector operatives. Curb reckless spending and borrowing, and reject odious debts. The proposed task force to audit public debts is unconstitutional and should be withdrawn immediately. And, the practice of state and public involvement in fundraisings must stop, as it facilitates the plundering and laundering of public resources and perpetuates inequitable development.
8. Ensure that development priorities align with Kenya’s economic realities and public needs. We demand the people's meaningful and active participation and the accrual of social, economic, and political benefits from development initiatives.
9. Contrary to his latest statement, Ruto and the treasury officials have no power to predetermine the country's priorities. Let the people decide. We object to the proposals in the NADCO to sustain the unconstitutional and irregular National Government-Constituency Development Funds (NG-CDF)—controlled by members of parliament—, National Affirmative Action Fund—managed by women representatives—, and the Ward Fund. These should focus on the legislative, oversight, and representation mandates at the national and county levels.
No dialogue
Based on the above demands and our other positions, we strongly believe Ruto’s inability to respect the people's will and the constitution's edicts has intensified the current predicament. Most of the issues and processes are within his sphere of control, where requisite political goodwill and effective administrative action are duly required. It is time to deliver and end the blame game.
KHRC again reject the warped proposal for a public dialogue. It is an unnecessary waste of public resources and opportunities. As witnessed in last year's NADCO and previous public engagements, these processes are regime tactics designed to buy time and prevent people from advancing their quest for truth and justice in the mismanagement of public affairs. Ruto must simply implement the constitution, listen to the people, and effect the proposed actions in this statement.
The ongoing attempts to close political space and avoid accountability by co-opting the opposition, weakening parliament, the judiciary, independent commissions and offices, and threatening activists and media will neither serve the public good nor resolve the current human rights and governance crisis.
May justice be our shield and defender. Aluta Continua.