Ahmednasir calls for government officials' diplomatic training

Transport CS Kipchumba Murkomen.[Bonface Okendo,Standard]

Constitutional lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi has called for the training of state officials in diplomacy.

Abdullahi’s statement comes following remarks by Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen on Rwanda being an autocratic country.

In a tweet, Abdullahi criticized Murkomen's statement where he said "Kenya should not be compared to Rwanda".

He called on Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Koriri Sing’oei to find a solution before the sentiments escalate and interfere with international relations.

"Dr Singoei Korir, you need to urgently organise workshops for government officials and educate them on basic tenets of the comity of nations. CS Kipchumba Murkomen can't attack a sovereign-friendly state without provocation and disparaging President Paul Kagame just like that. This is embarrassing," said Abdullahi.

"CSs must be taken through a crash course, teaching them the responsibilities that come with their new constitutional offices! Very soon, Kenya will be a pariah state in the hood." 

The lawyer was referring to the Murkomen’s comments in an interview on Citizen TV on December 18 where he said that Kenya should not be compared to Rwanda because it's "even smaller than Kajiado county."

"Rwanda is not like Kenya. Rwanda is an autocracy and there whatever the President says is the law. For every decision you make in this country you must go through a proposal then Parliament then public participation," said Murkomen.

CS Murkomen was answering a question on the Ministry's efforts to educate motorists about road safety during the holiday season in which several road accidents have been recorded.

He said that Kenya is a democracy where the rule of law reigns supreme adding that processes to implement laws in Kenya can take time because they must go through several steps, including public participation, parliament, and, on occasion, the court.

His comments have since then sparked outrage online, with different individuals criticizing his words.

BBC Journalist Alan Kusujja said; " Perfect specimen of unfiltered upuzi. If Murkomen is as close to Ruto as he’s believed to be, how does this reflect on his boss?"

"It is wrong for a CS in our country to say such stuff about a friendly neighbouring country. My brother Kipchumba Murkomen please learn from Rwanda H.E Paul Kagame who is more than willing to show the rest of Africa how to run a country where even Boda Boda over 1M+ thrive and they respect the law," said Mohammed Hersi.

"Rwanda may be small, so is Singapore, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein, by the way, the only countries in Africa whose growth rate is over 6per cent p.a. are Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia and Rwanda," lawyer Donald Kipkorir said