Wetangula: Musalia Mudavadi's Prime CS Post Is Legal

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has ruled that the Prime Cabinet Secretary (CS) post created by President William Ruto is legal.

Speaking on Monday, October 17 before the vetting of Musalia Mudavadi for the position, Wetangula determined that the post was constitutional and among the 22 CSs the President was allowed to nominate.

"The President nominated 22 Cabinet Secretaries including the Prime Cabinet Secretary. In this regard, the office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary finds its Constitutional basis under article 152 (1) (d) of the Constitution and the nominee, if approved, will be one of the Cabinet Secretaries," stated Wetangula.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi during a past address. /FILE

He added that Mudavadi's role would be guided by the rules followed by other Cabinet Secretaries.

"The President assigned specific roles to the office of the Prime CS including coordinating and supervising of the Ministries and State departments. 

"It is within the powers of the President to designate the title and assign functions to a CS. To this end, the designation of Prime CS is not inconsistent with any provision of the Law and therefore the designation is properly legally and Constitutionally grounded," he added.

Members of Parliament (MP) allied to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's Azimio la Umoja Coalition had argued that the position was illegally created and vowed to oppose it.

In the case of Mudavadi, President Ruto named his position, Prime CS, and assigned him the function of coordinating other Cabinet secretaries.

How Much Is Mudavadi Worth?

During the vetting, Mudavadi disclosed that his net worth is around Ksh4 billion, taking into account his properties and investments amongst other sources of income.

"If I take my investment in shares in some companies and also some properties I own, I would put my net worth at about Ksh4 billion."

"My sources of income are rental income, dividends where I have shareholdings and also interest and of course other expenses that come from the farm," he said.

National Assembly Majority Leader, Kimani Ichung'wah had questioned Mudavadi regarding the conflict of interest that might arise in the event the government aims to lease his properties.

"Hon. Musalia on page 4 of the document you provided, looking at the net worth and the schedule you submitted, I see you have an interest in an aircraft with exclusive air services."

"You have properties in Riverside, from where you earn your rental income and other office spaces you have also indicated. Supposing the government leased any of these properties, would that tend to conflict of interest," Ichung'wa posed.

"Clearly, there are procedures in law that would make full disclosure under such circumstances if they did arise," Mudavadi responded.

Mudavadi Responds To Woodley Graft Case

Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi also sought clarity on Mudavadi's stance on a past corruption case in 2007 where the defunct Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission accused him of acquiring properties at Woodley estate in Nairobi through fraudulent means.

"Woodley estate is a property that belongs to Nairobi County government. I've stayed in Woodley and my family has always had that premises. To this day, we pay rent to the Nairobi County government. At no time has that property been transferred. The Kenya Anti-corruption body at that time had not verified the facts. I ended up seeking legal redress on my part and charging for defamation against the anti-graft body for producing misleading information," Mudavadi responded. 

He also affirmed that he had dropped his role as the leader of the Amani National Congress (ANC) party.