Court asked to sack Ngilu, Kambi over integrity

By KURIAN MUSA

Kenya: Two individuals have filed separate court cases against Cabinet secretaries Charity Ngilu and Kazungu Kambi questioning their suitability to serve in their positions.

Clifford Keya wants the High Court to declare Ngilu, who is the Lands, Urban Development and Housing secretary, unfit to hold public office for allegedly breaching the Constitution while Charles Omanga wants Kambi, the Labour Cabinet Secretary, to provide his academic credentials to prove his qualification to serve in the Cabinet.

Both cases are pending before High Court judge Mumbi Ngugi, who certified one of them as urgent. Ngilu’s case will be heard this morning while that of Kambi is scheduled for February 11. Keya moved to court yesterday to challenge Ngilu’s actions in transferring and deploying 16 officers in her office to other ministries and departments.

He said that Ngilu ought to allow the Lands Commission, which is fully mandated to do transfers in the Lands, Urban and Housing ministry, to carry out its mandate according to the Constitution.

Through Andrew Kariu and Associates Advocates, Keya’s petition was filed in the constitutional review division as urgent.

“It is in the public domain that the National Assembly, which protects public interests, has on several occasions warned the first respondent against violating the Constitution, but she is defiant to the detriment of Kenyans, who deserve to be served in a fair and impartial manner,” the petitioner said.

Omanga filed his case as an urgent matter, saying that Kambi should not be allowed to continue serving in the Cabinet with questionable papers.

“This may jeopardise good governance and constitutional discipline of suitability and competence,” Omanga said in his suit.

The petitioner seeks access to information currently held by Kambi and the Attorney General to enable him exercise his fundamental rights.

Public confidence

Omanga said: “I have reason to believe that the first respondent (Kazungu Kambi) gave false information in his self declaration form.”

The petitioner has a constitutional right under Article 35(1) (b) to information held by another person required to exercise fundamental rights.

Similarly, Ngilu is accused of not carrying out her duties in a manner that maintains public confidence in the integrity of the Lands, Housing, and Urban Development ministry.

She is accused of openly practising nepotism and favouritism in the appointments of public officers, some of whom she has no legal capacity to appoint.  “She has continued to contravene the law, notwithstanding full knowledge that her actions are unconstitutional and unlawful,” said Keya in his petition.

Keya has told the court to issue orders at the earliest possible opportunity before January 24 to restrain the entire process of appointing, promoting, transferring and replacing the deployed officers.

“This petition may be rendered useless if the orders are not issued to refrain the respondent from making further appointments,” Keya said.

It was alleged that according to the letter dated January 10, Ngilu deployed seven of the 16 public officers in her ministry contrary to the law.

“The first respondent has vowed to continue with the appointments and promote public officers in her ministry while fully aware that such power rests with the Lands Commission,” reads part of the petition.

In a supportive affidavit, Keya stated that when the National Assembly learnt about the blatant contravention of the Constitution by Ngilu, the Departmental Committee on Lands and the Select Committee on Delegated Legislation were requested to investigate the matter and prepare a report for debate in the House.

She is accused of contravening Article 73 of the Constitution and Section 17 of the Public Officers Ethics Act.

Censured

The petitioner noted that with the deployments being unconstitutional, Ngilu’s actions do not inspire public confidence in the integrity of the office of the Cabinet secretary.

The suit further states that the CS has continued with her transfers in full knowledge of a parliamentary report that censured her.

The report, the petitioner says, recommended that “the Cabinet Secretary for Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Hon. Charity Ngilu, should take full responsibility for making the arbitrary appointments and further held to account for any undesired consequences not limited to the financial loss that may arise from the actions of commission on her part”.

The joint report adopted by the House, the petitioner says, was to the effect that the law was violated by the respondent when she appointed and deployed staff in her office.

“She is not fit to continue serving as a public officer and this honourable court is mandated to declare her such,” read the suit papers.

“There is real apprehension that the respondent may ground the sensitive docket he is in charge of,” Omanga expressed in his affidavit on Kambi.