Was it right to extend Kaparo’s term at NCIC?

National Cohesion and Integration Commission(NCIC) Chairman Francis Ole Kaparo

By a Gazette notice, the President extended the term of the Chairman and Commissioners of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) by one year. Now, Francis ole Kaparo was appointed NCIC chairman on August, 12 2014, alongside seven other commissioners. Section 19 of the National Cohesion and Integration Act No 12 of 2008 provides that the Term of office of the Chairperson and the commissioners shall hold office for a term of three years and shall be eligible for re-appointment for one further term of three years. There is no provision for extension of term nor can the term be limited to one year.

In addition, the Procedure in the First Schedule to the Act, for nominating commissioners must be through the National Assembly. The Clerk of the National Assembly is required to invite applications from persons qualified under the Act for nomination as commissioners. The relevant Parliamentary committee in consultation with the Cabinet Secretary responsible shall, within seven days of the expiry of the 21 days-period consider all the applications received and recommend to the National Assembly suitably qualified fifteen persons for nomination as commissioners. The names of the nominees are then submitted to the Cabinet Secretary for onward transmission to the President to appoint therefrom eight commissioners.

Apollo Mboya is an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya

I think it is important that we get the President is in office until  he hands over. Then it means that there was nothing wrong with him extending Francis ole Kaparo's tenure. It is also worth to note that we are still in elections mood and the commission needs a head in order to monitor and tame those who are spreading hate speech. If we wait, those who will arrest over hate speech will argue that the commission did not have powers to do so. Mr Kaparo's presence in NCIC is important and we cannot have changes now. We need him in office until everything has calmed down.

Let us also be fair to the man. If he has worked well, and his employer thinks that he ought to get another term, who are we to question that? The argument is that the office has a fixed term but even in employment, the contract can be extended if there is need for it. Hate speech has already landed even leaders in court and thus you see if we do not have the agency operating, there will be a vacuum which the people can take advantage of. As Kenyans, we need to understand that the decision to have him in office was not from the blues, someone thought about it and consulted, even with the Government's legal advisor. Let us wait and see what he will do, then we can criticise him from that point and not that he was given another term.

James Mwangangi is a security management consultant