President Uhuru Kenyatta is now set for reconstitution of committees, which will quickly vet the new Cabinet that is set to be unveiled in a looming cabinet reshuffle, veteran politician and his ally Maina Kamanda has said.
Kamanda who was speaking to a local daily revealed that by the time Uhuru reconstitutes house committees, the BBI report will be in the House for debate and adoption by a two-thirds vote.
The BBI report said to be ready and the head of state planning to reshape his Cabinet. So far, President Kenyatta has removed deputy president William Ruto’s allies from key parliamentary postions.
During Jubilee Parliamentary Group meeting held on Monday June 22 at KICC, Ruto ally Aden Duale was removed from his position as National Assembly Majority leader.
During the meeting, Uhuru once again said he would only endorse for the presidency in 2022 someone who will complete his legacy.
Surprisingly, Uhuru told the MPs he has no problem with Ruto.
“There are some of you who are angling to be leaders and I am still in office. You just continue,” he said, and lashed out at people whom he said had characterised the 2022 presidential contest as a battle of the rich versus the poor.
“There are some of you calling me dictator. I am not a dictator…Anyway, those of you who want us to work, let’s work, those who want politics, continue,” he is reported to have said.
The latest changes have signalled even a major shakeup in the Cabinet where the President has absolute powers to hire and fire.
Duale has been majority leader, one of the most influential and powerful positions in Parliament, since 2013.
Kipipiri MP Amos Kimunya, who replaced him, served as minister and deputy leader of government business in the 10th Parliament.
In a bid to appease the Somali community and the Northeastern region, the President crossed over from Garissa to Wajir and picked Eldas MP Aden Keynan as the new Jubilee coalition joint secretary.
Keynan is expected to fill Duale’s shoes by leveraging on the plum position to fortify Uhuru’s foothold in the region’s politics.
Keynan, a former ODM man, also serves as a member of the Parliamentary Service Commission.
He is expected to be the new link between the opposition and Jubilee MPs in the House and would be required to occasionally lobby for bipartisan approaches to push for the government agenda.
