Kenya: President Uhuru nominates Ann Nderitu for Registrar of Political Parties job

President Uhuru Kenyatta has nominated Ann Nderitu to take up the job of Registrar of Political Parties. The president has also nominated for appointment as assistant registrars Ali Abullahi Surro, Florence Taabu, and Wilson Mohochi, according to a news report by The Star.

The four will be vetted by the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee chaired by Kangema MP Muturi Kigano.

The National Assembly is expected to vet the nominees and approve or reject the nominations within 21 days. Speaker Justin Muturi asked the committee to table the report by September 24 in line with the provisions of the law.

Nderitu has been holding forth at the Registrar of Political Parties since August 2018 after Lucy Ndung'u left. She was then head of voter registration at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

The recruitment, which started in May, has been challenged in court by a Jubilee Party official citing failure to adhere to principles of fair administrative action.

The petitioners want the courts to stop Parliament and the Public Service Commission (PSC) from conducting the selection.

They argue that the recruitment is in breach of the Constitution because the law was changed 'illegally' in 2016 to incorporate PSC.

Kabundu, alongside Caleb Mutuma, Anthony Fondo, and Mutei Caleb, says that PSC's involvement amounts to the Executive influencing the recruitment, hence usurps the office's independence.