Ngilu fights to retain rejected appointees

By GEOFFREY MOSOKU and FAITH RONOH

NAIROBI, KENYA: Lands, Housing and Urban Development Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu is headed for another clash with Parliament after ignoring its recommendations and is now seeking to regularise appointments that were rejected by MPs only two months ago.

Ngilu has written to the Public Service Commission asking to have the officers appointed as part of her proposed new staff changes in the ministry.

The controversial minister is likely to be put on the spot once more over what top ministry officials say is yet another attempt to legalize irregular appointments and to defy parliament. Ngilu has appointed senior principal state counsel Sarah Njuhi Mwenda as the acting Chief Lands Registrar, who will have powers to sign title deeds. 

Ms. Mwenda is set to replace Mr Cyrus Wambugu Ngatia who the CS wants redeployed.  Although the deployment may be procedural, the CS has no powers to designate an officer to sign titles as this is the preserve of the Lands Commission. 

“Further to our meeting in your offices on the 10th January 2014, where the above matter was deliberated at length, I hereby present the revised proposals of the staff changes within the ministry,” Ngilu’s  letter titled Staff Deployment and dated 10th January 2014 states. It is addressed to PSC chair Prof. Margaret Kobia. 

National Land Commission chair Muhamad Swazuri said the CS had consulted them on administrative changes she proposed but they did not agree to appoint a chief lands registrar.

“The letter we signed does not have an appointment of a person to sign title deeds,” Swazuri said. The position of Chief Lands Registrar was created by the National Lands Registration Act, which will only become operational once Parliament passes appropriate regulations.

INTERIM BASIS

In the latest changes, Ngilu wants 16 senior officers, who include Lands Secretary Zablon Mabea out of the ministry. Mabea is set to be replaced by Peter Kahuho Kangethe.

In October last year, the Cabinet Secretary created a position of Director General and appointed Mr Kahuho, a former Coast Province Lands Officer, as the acting Director General on an interim basis.

Ngilu was forced to withdraw a gazette notice on the appointments as it emerged it was illegal.

Sources at Ardhi House say that Principal Secretary Mariam El Maawy, who is mandated by law to communicate to the PSC, differed with the Cabinet Secretary over the appointments, prompting Ngilu to author the letter herself.

“The PS was uncomfortable about writing to the PSC since the Ministerial Advisory Committee did not meet to sanction the changes,” a senior official privy to the discussion said.

The National Assembly probed the changes through a joint parliamentary committee representing Lands, Natural Resources & Water and Delegated Legislation. The House adopted the committee’s report, which compelled Ngilu to reinstate the officers.

Yesterday, the chairman of the Committee on Delegated Legislation, William Cheptumo, and Lands Committee Vice Chairman Joseph Gitari, said MPs would not allow State officers who failed to implement Parliamentary recommendations to go scot free.

“The House had a committee on implementation led by Soipan Tuya and it is only this committee that will report back to us to ascertain if the House has been defied,” Cheptumo said.

Gitari added: “Parliament will not micro-manage the executive but all its recommendations have to be implemented to the latter. It will be unfortunate of if CS Ngilu defied the House.” In the latest changes, Ngilu wants Cesare Mbaria and Julius Rotich, whom she promoted to Director of Survey and Deputy respectively, be regularised.

In the changes that were rejected by parliament in October, she had moved Ephantus Murage, who had been the Director of Survey, to the Ministry of Mining and his deputy, Boaz Owino, was transferred to the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum.

In the current changes, Poly Gitimu is set to become acting principal Kenya Institute of Survey and Mapping while Augustine Masinde has been retained as director of physical planning, as well as Esther Ogega, who remains Director Land Adjudication and Settlement. Antony Itui also remains as Director Valuation. 

In the letter to the PSC, Ngilu wants the following officers to be redeployed out of the ministry: Elizabeth Gicheha (Senior Assistant Commissioner of Lands) to be replaced by Jane Ndiba as Senior Assistant Director, Land Registration, and Assistant Commissioner of Lands Rosalina Mule to be replaced by Gladys Mwikali Muyanga.

APPOINTEES

Others are Joram Kimemia (Assistant Commissioner of Lands), Jackson Wanjau (Principal Land Registrar), Evans Marwanga (Registration Officer, Kwale), Joseph Koskei (Senior Land Registration Officer, Kwale), George Gichimu (Principal Land Registration Officer, Kisumu), Lawrence Kuria (Senior Assistant Land Registration Officer, Laikipia), Jonathan King’ori (Senior Land Registrar, Kiambu), Daniel Kimori (Senior Land Registrar, Nakuru), Jonathan Kimutai, (Senior Land Registrar, Kajiado), Cecily Murage (Senior Land Registrar, Thika) and Renson Mulele (Chief Land Registration Officer, Mombasa).

Ngilu has asked the PSC to appoint the following officers: George Orwaru (Acting Chief Land Registration Officer), Peter Mburu (Registration Officer Kwale), Edwin Wafula (acting Chief Land Registration Officer, Kwale), Carolyne Kituyi (acting Principal Land Registration Officer, Kisumu), Beatrice Githinji (acting Land Registration Officer, Laikipia), Winfred Muguro (acting Principal Land Registrar, Kiambu), Richard Maritim (acting Principal Land Registrar, Nakuru),  Abraham Njoroge, acting Senior Land Registration Officer, Kajiado),  Felin Nyakundi (acting Principal Land Registration officer, Thika and John Gichuki (acting Land Registration Officer, Mombasa).