Kibaki, Raila clash over Cabinet purge

President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga seem to have taken different stands over how to deal with the maize and education scandals. Photo/FILE

President Kibaki on Sunday evening lifted the suspension of two Cabinet ministers by Prime Minister Raila Odinga, terming it illegal.

Mr Odinga had earlier announced, quoting the National Accord and the Constitution which give him power to supervise ministers, that he was suspending the two whose ministries were embroiled in corruption scandals to pave way for investigations. The suspension was to last three months.

Remove ministers

But President Kibaki later said Mr Odinga had no power to remove ministers and the suspension was not done in accordance with the Constitution.

“The legal provisions on which the Prime Minister acted do not confer him the authority to cause a minister to vacate his or her office,” Mr Kibaki said, adding, “The war against corruption will be successfully fought when we do so in accordance with the constitution and the due process of law.”

Asked by reporters whether he had consulted the President, Mr Odinga answered: “Yes, requisite consultations have been made within the government. This is a government decision and I have also quoted the section in the Constitution and the National Accord which give me power to take the action I have made.”

Mr Kibaki, in his statement said he had not been consulted and, also quoting the National Accord and the Constitution, said ministers can only be removed by the President after consultations.

The suspended ministers, Prof Sam Ongeri of Education and William Ruto, dismissed their suspension saying only the President could remove them. On Sunday, Mr Odinga said in order for the government to conduct fair, independent and comprehensive investigations, the two ministers had to step aside.

Gathering evidence

“The decision taken will result in gathering evidence to determine if any individuals need to be prosecuted in the two scandals,” said the PM. Mr Odinga said two forensic audits by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) on the maize scandal and the Internal Auditor General’s report on Free Primary Education had laid credible foundations for the two ministers to be investigated.

In a quick response, Prof Ongeri said: “I have not received any communication from the appointing authority. I am very clear in my mind who the appointing authority is,” he said.

Mr Kibaki said his position on the status of the two ministers should not be interpreted to mean he had abandoned the war against corruption.“Therefore constitutionally, the two ministers remain in office,” the President said.

On Saturday, President Kibaki announced that eight public officials were to step aside in relation to corruption scandals. The education scandal involved fraud where top ministry officials, according to the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, drew inflated imprests for seminars.

In the other scandal, maize in the strategic store was sold to profiteers who made millions of shillings while consumers suffered high prices and the government lost an estimated Sh2 billion. Procurement regulations were also broken in the importation of maize.

There were street protests in Eldoret, Kapsabet and Nandi Hills against Mr Ruto’s suspension. Prof Ongeri delayed a press conference he had called for 3pm and was consulting in his office with aides for an hour.

When he finally came out to address the waiting journalists, Prof Ongeri started by cheekily remarking that he was not in shock – in apparent reference to the PM’s announcement. “I hear somebody reporting mshtuko kubwa, hakuna mshtuko (there is no shock),” he remarked before he read a statement.

Section 4 (1) of the National Accord, quoted by Mr Odinga, says the Prime Minister shall have authority to co-ordinate and supervise the execution of the functions and affairs of the government of Kenya including those of ministries.

It also says that the PM “may assign any of the coordination responsibilities of his office to the deputy Prime Minister” and that he is to “perform such other duties as may be assigned to him by the President or under any written law”.

Section 15A of the Constitution on the other hand establishes the coalition government and creates the office of the prime minister, his deputies and ministers. The two sections, however, do not categorically give the PM powers to suspend ministers, leaving the issue to different interpretations.

On Sunday, the PM directed Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, the Criminal Investigation Department and the Inspectorate of State Corporations to jointly investigate the scandals. “The team should review the above two reports, as well as the reports on the maize scandal by the KACC, the Inspectorate of State Corporations and the CID with a view to recommending those cases which should be prosecuted,” he added.

Asked why the Special Programmes Minister, Dr Naomi Shaban, in whose ministry the Strategic Grain Reserve, one of the sources of the maize scandal fell, had not been suspended, Mr Odinga said the minister’s name was not mentioned in the reports.

“Her name (Dr Naomi Shaban) is not specifically mentioned in the reports I quoted. It talks about the ministry (Special Programmes) but does not mention her, however it mentions others who have already stepped aside,” said Mr Odinga adding that the two ministers (Mr Ruto and Prof Ongeri) had been mentioned in the reports.

Mr Ruto was mentioned in the PWC report, also referred to as project green, for having used his personal assistant to write a letter to the National Cereals and Produce Board for an individual to be allocated 1,000 bags.