State grip: Inside Ruto's plan to control counties and public service

President William Ruto signing bills in to law. [PCS]

President William Ruto is pushing for sweeping changes in how Kenya’s public service and national government are run — changes that critics say will weaken independent institutions, sideline Parliament and governors, and concentrate more power in State House.

At the centre of the storm are the National Government Co-ordination Bill, 2023 and the Public Service Human Resource Management Bill, 2024 — draft laws that would, for the first time, place the Public Service Commission (PSC) under the orbit of the President’s office, through the Head of Public Service, Felix Koskei.