President Uhuru names four Cabinet members

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto announce Cabinet members at State House, Nairobi on April 23, 2013. Photo/BILLY MUTAI 

By RACHEL OMBAKA AND PPS

In Summary

1. Fred Matiang'i (Information, Communication and Technology (ICT)
2. Henry K. Rotich (The National Treasury)
3. James Wainaina Macharia (Health)
4. Amb Amina Mohamed (Foreign Affairs)

President Uhuru Kenyatta has named four out of the 18 members of his Cabinet and reassured Kenyans of his commitment to put in place a government that will not only deliver on the Jubilee Coalition’s pledges but also transform the country.

The nominees are Dr. Fred Okengo Matiang'i for the position of Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT), Mr. Henry K. Rotich as Cabinet Secretary in the National Treasury Ministry, James Wainaina Macharia for the position of Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Amb. Amina Mohamed for the position of Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

They will be the first to be vetted by Parliament.

Acknowledging that many brilliant Kenyans were considered for the Cabinet Secretary positions, President Kenyatta said the selection of the nominees was informed by the Constitutional requirements, the need to reflect the country’s diversity and the quest to have capable people who will take the country to the next level of development.

The President said he released the names of the four nominees to allow Parliament to start the vetting process and the remaining Cabinet Secretary nominees will be named at a later date.

Dr Matiang'i was the executive director State University of New York (SUNY) Kenya, working as a liaison between the organisation and Parliament. (READ: Profile: Dr Fred Okengo Matiangi)

Mr Rotich worked at The Treasury as the head of Macro Economics. (READ: Profile: Henry K. Rotich)

Mr Wainaina was Managing Director at the NIC Bank. (READ: Profile: James Wainaina Macharia)

Ms Mohamed served as a diplomat in Geneva for many years and was one of the front-runners for the top World Trade Organisation job. (READ: Profile: Amina Mohamed)

Reiterating that his Government will be all-inclusive, President Kenyatta said he and Deputy President William Ruto have been consulting widely to come up with Cabinet Secretaries who will not only represent the face of Kenya but also serve wananchi effectively.

“As we have indicated before, will serve all Kenyans without discrimination and we are ready to work with all Kenyans in achieving this goal,” the President said.

Fielding questions from journalists on other Government positions, President Kenyatta said his key priority is to constitute an effective executive arm of the Government in the form of Cabinet Secretaries while
other positions will be filled in due course.

On the national budget, the President said the budget process is on course and will be released on time.

Deputy President William Ruto urged Kenyans to be patient as the nominees for the remaining Cabinet positions will be named soon.

Responding to questions from journalists, Deputy President Ruto explained that the Jubilee Government acknowledged the importance of the cooperative movement in mobilizing resources for development at the grassroots level and cooperative issues will addressed under the Industrialization and Enterprise Development Ministry.

The Deputy President also disclosed that East African Community matters will fall under the Ministry of Commerce and Tourism.

The public is also expected to participate in the vetting process with the Parliamentary Committee on Appointments collecting their views regarding the suitability or otherwise of the Cabinet nominees.

On Tuesday, Parliament approved a 28-member team, chaired by Speaker Justin Muturi, to vet the nominees