Nairobi Town Clerk Duba can assume office-court

New Nairobi Town Clerk Roba Duba (centre), his predecessor Philip Kisia (right) and deputy Mayor William Kinyanyi (left) confer during past event at City Hall, Nairobi May 4, 2012. Mr Duba can now assume office after the High Court set aside orders that had stopped his appointment May 8, 2012.

New Nairobi Town Clerk Roba Duba can assume office after the High Court set aside orders that had stopped his appointment.

Justice Mohammed Warsame rescinded last week's decision on Tuesday following an application by Mr Duba claiming that the orders were obtained fraudulently through deliberate concealment of material facts which would have enabled the court reach a more informed decision.

Through lawyer George Kithi, Mr Duba said he has already assumed the responsibility of the Town Clerk and it will greatly prejudice the council, its employees, stakeholders and the public since he is now a signatory to council’s accounts.

“The application was premised on speculation and misconception since Mr Duba was seconded from the Ministry of Local Government while he was a Town Clerk of Mombasa Municipal Council. The application was bad in law hinged on ignorance and without proper information,” said Mr Kithi.

The judge lifted the orders after the applicants who filed the case last week failed to appear in court to answer the claims raised by Mr Duba.

Reinstate orders

However, hours after the judge set aside the orders, lawyer Anthony Oluoch who filed the petition against Mr Duba made another application seeking the orders to be reinstated.

Mr Oluoch said that his failure to appear in court was not deliberate since he was not aware that a hearing had been fixed and only learnt of Mr Duba’s suit to lift the orders through the press.

On Friday last week, Justice Warsame quashed the appointment of Mr Duba moments before he took over from outgoing Clerk Philip Kisia whose term expired on May 4.

This followed an application by civil society activist Patrick Njuguna claiming that the Ministry of Local Government appointed Mr Duba without subjecting him to a competitive recruitment procedure as provided for in the Constitution.

The judge also allowed a plea by the activist to direct the Local Government Ministry to subject the position of Nairobi Town Clerk to a competitive procedure and public participation by advertising the position.

The activist submitted that the decision to appoint Mr Duba denied other interested and qualified Kenyans an opportunity to offer themselves for consideration for appointment.

Conflict of interest

He claimed that Mr Duba was until his appointment the chief executive of Lapfund (Local Authorities Provident Fund), an organisation he claimed do business with the city council and his appointment was likely to place him in a position of conflict with the council.

He argued that since the appointment was not advertised and Mr Duba not subjected to competitive recruitment, it breached the constitutional principles of equality, non-discrimination and inclusiveness.

However, Mr Duba argued that the orders were issued out of misrepresentation and had the right information been made available before the court, he should not have been stopped from taking over from Mr Kisia.

He submitted in his affidavit that he saw nothing untoward in his appointment since he has at all times been an employee of the public service commission and posted to various stations in various capacities.