Kenya’s Attorney General Justin Muturi has moved to the Court of Appeal in the capital Nairobi to challenge a High Court’s decision that blocked 50 presidential appointees from assuming office.
Muturi, who filed his notice on Wednesday, said he was dissatisfied with the verdict issued by judges Aleem Visram and Kanyi Kimondo on Monday.
The judges, who were the majority, declared that the positions of Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS), an equivalent of assistant minister, were unconstitutional.
Judges Visram and Kimondo said they “do not think it was the intention of the framers of the constitution to have 50 CASs deputising 22 cabinet ministers.”
Hedwig Ong’udi, the only other judge who heard the matter, held a contrary opinion – that 23 CAS positions were constitutional because the previous government had followed the law in declaring the vacancies.
She, however, took issue with the addition of 27 more by President William Ruto.
Election losers’ reward
Ruto had selected several politicians for CAS positions, most of them being losers in the August 9, 2022 General Election.
Nairobi's inaugural governor, Evans Kidero, and musician-turned-politician Charles Njagua, whose stage name is Jaguar, were among those picked to serve as CASs.
The CAS position was first created by Ruto's predecessor, Uhuru Kenyatta, in January 2018.
Bloated government
Justifying the creation of the new position, Kenyatta said the respective office holders would “help cabinet secretaries (ministers) run the various dockets.”
The former president had about 30 CASs, while Ruto, who assumed office in September 2022, increased the number to 50, triggering a court petition.
Had the CASs assumed office under Ruto's reign, they would have cost Kenyans a total of Ksh460 million ($3.3 million) in gross salaries annually.
