Francis Muthaura given my post, claims scholar

Professor Shaukat Abdulrazak. Photo/Gideon Maundu. 

In Summary

• Prof Shaukat Abdulrazak told the Nation that his appointment to chair the new state corporation was effective March 1 last year through a gazette notice and a follow up letter sent to confirm the position.

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By Nation Correspondent
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A Coast scholar is crying foul over Mr Francis Muthaura’s appointment as the Lamu-Port Southern Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor Authority chairman, saying he was appointed for the same position.

Prof Shaukat Abdulrazak told the Nation that his appointment to chair the new state corporation was effective March 1 last year through a gazette notice and a follow up letter sent to confirm the position.

“I was appointed on March 1, 2013, to the position for a period of three years,” said Prof Abdulrazak in a telephone interview on Thursday.

The chief executive officer of the National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation (Nacosti) added that since his appointment, he had chaired three Lapsset board meetings to speed up construction of the Sh1.5 trillion port project.

Prof Abdulrazak observed that his appointment was automatically revoked after President Kenyatta appointed Mr Muthaura.

“I have not been notified of my removal and just read in the media about Mr Muthaura’s appointment to the position,” he stated.

A section of Coast leaders are now demanding the revocation of Mr Muthaura’s appointment and an immediate reinstatement of Prof Abdulrazak.

“Prof Abdulrazak, like any Kenyan technocrat, deserves fair and humane treatment and we demand that his appointment as the Lapsset chair be upheld,” Mr Andrew Mwangura, the Seafarers Union of Kenya secretary-general posted on his Facebook page.

On Sunday Coast MPs demanded for removal of Muthaura adding that President Kenyatta should have appointed a qualified person from the Coast rather than appointing a retired public servant.

Coast MPs Shariff Ali (Lamu East), Shakila Abdalla (Lamu County Women Representative) and Abdulswamad Nassir of Mvita argued that the region has got highly qualified people who have vast experience on port matters than Mr Muthaura.

“We demand for the revocation of the appointment and instead a qualified person from Lamu should given the position,” they added.

Mr Ali claimed that the President had discriminated upon Lamu county residents by denying them the LAPSSET project position.

The legislator said the Lamu port project was doomed to fail if locals would not be involved in the implementation process.