Kenya: High Court Upholds Ruto's Reappointment of Fired Cabinet Secretaries in Split Ruling

Nairobi — In a split decision, the High Court has upheld President William Ruto's controversial reappointment of Cabinet Secretaries dismissed during the 2024 Cabinet shake-up, ruling that their removal from office did not render them ineligible for future appointment.

In the majority judgment delivered on June 30, Justices Eric Ogola and Anthony Mrima found that President Ruto acted within the Constitution when he reappointed several former Cabinet Secretaries after dissolving his Cabinet in the wake of the anti-Finance Bill protests.

The two judges held that dismissal under Article 152(5)(b) of the Constitution is a political and administrative action that does not permanently disqualify a person from public office.

Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines

"A dismissal under Article 152(5)(b) of the Constitution is a political and administrative act. It does not amount to a permanent disqualification from public office unless it is founded on a violation of Chapter Six of the Constitution," the majority judgment states.

The court found that none of the Cabinet Secretaries who were reappointed had been removed for breaching the Constitution's leadership and integrity provisions.

"None of the reappointed Cabinet Secretaries had been removed from office for violation of Chapter Six of the Constitution, and therefore their nomination and subsequent appointment did not contravene the Constitution," the judges ruled.

The majority also rejected arguments that appointing opposition politicians to Cabinet undermined Kenya's multi-party democracy, holding that the Constitution neither establishes an official opposition nor bars qualified members of opposition parties from serving in the Executive.

Justice Jairus Ngaah dissented, holding that President Ruto's decision to reappoint ministers he had dismissed for poor performance was irrational and inconsistent with constitutional principles.

"The reappointment of the same individuals who had just been dismissed for 'below par' performance is irrational and inconsistent with the constitutional requirement of suitability for public office," Justice Ngaah said in his dissent.

Justice Ngaah also disagreed with the majority's finding on opposition appointments, arguing that appointing senior opposition politicians to Cabinet without a formal coalition arrangement undermined Kenya's system of multi-party democracy.

However, the judges declared the current Cabinet unconstitutional for failing to comply with the two-thirds gender principle and directed President Ruto to rectify the imbalance within 120 days.

"The Appointing Authority is hereby directed to make appointments of Cabinet Secretaries in conformity to Article 27(8) within 120 days from the date of this Judgment," Justice Ogola said while delivering the majority decision.

Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters

Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox

The court held that the Cabinet, currently comprising 18 men and seven women among its 25 members, falls short of the constitutional requirement that no more than two-thirds of members of an appointive body be of the same gender.

The majority further upheld the appointment of the Attorney-General, finding that the Constitution requires only presidential nomination and approval by the National Assembly, and ruled that Parliament substantially complied with public participation requirements during the vetting of Cabinet nominees.

The petitions stemmed from President Ruto's July 2024 decision to dissolve his Cabinet following nationwide anti-Finance Bill protests before reappointing several former ministers and bringing opposition leaders into his broad-based government.

While the majority upheld the legality of those appointments, the split ruling requires the President to reconstitute the Cabinet within 120 days to comply with the Constitution's gender representation requirements.