Governance
President William Ruto has been challenged to observe merit and competence while nominating new Cabinet Secretaries. The call was made by Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG) Party leader David Ochieng during the Party’s delegate’s conference in Trans Nzoia County on Monday.
Lauding the President’s move to disolve the previous Cabinet, Ochieng said the bold step gives him a chance to redeem himself by picking qualified individuals who would drive the country’s development agenda to another level.
“Sacking of all the Cabinet Secretaries was a courageous move which gives the President a chance to pick people who will not only salvage the Kenya Kwanza regime but will also ensure quality service delivery. When picking the Cabinet, let him ensure that individuals are picked on merit and competence.
How do you expect quality services to be delivered if you pick someone who has studied business to run the Ministry of Agriculture? Will such a person have knowledge on fertilizer, irrigation or plumbing?” he quizzed adding that individuals picked should be aligned to their areas of study.
Movement for Democracy and Growth (MDG) Party leader David Ochieng addressing the Party’s delegate’s conference in Trans Nzoia County on Monday, July 15, 2024.
He added that the new Cabinet should depict the face of the country. Ochieng, who also doubles up as Siaya legislator, said the President should resist attempts of picking more than two Cabinet Secretaries from one community. Urging President Ruto to employ wisdom while addressing issues raised by Gen Zs, Ochieng reiterated that the concerns raised were valid and to a large extent reflected the distresses of Kenyans.
“I am happy the President has started to tackle the concerns being voiced by our youth. The same zeal should be depicted while picking new Cabinet Secretaries. Since Kenya is big, we don’t want a situation where a particular community has more than two cabinet secretaries,” he said.
However, Ochieng dismissed the push for dialogue and urged President Ruto to resist being arm twisted into one, explaining that the country has in the past witnessed so many dialogues which only benefitted a few individuals at the expense of all Kenyans.
“One does not need dialogue to address issues of corruption, inequalities in Public Service, unemployment, tribalism corruption and what have you,” he said as he urged youth and Kenyans to give President time to deliver services.