Will Uhuru's CAS Position Be Thrown Out By Ruto? Govt Asks For Kenyans' Views
The public was given October 6, 2022 as the deadline to give their views.
Marvin Chege 
Members of the public have been granted an opportunity to give their views on the controversial Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) created under former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration.
In a notice advertised in local dailies on Wednesday, September 21, the State invited Kenyans to give their comments before affirming the legality of the position.
The public was notified that President William Ruto's administration decided to kick start the review process as its intention of creating the post after Uhuru's introduction of the posts was thrown out by the High Court in April 2021.
"Pursuant to the provisions of Article 132(4)(a) of the Constitution, the President has proposed to establish the offices of Chief Administrative Secretary which will be offices in the public service and will be under the direction of Cabinet Secretaries.
President William Ruto signs the Executive Orders at State House, Nairobi on Tuesday, September 13, 2022. /PSCU
"The Public Service Commission hereby seeks views from members of the public on the proposed establishment of the offices of Chief Administrative Secretary. All views should be in writing addressed to the Secretary, Public Service Commission and hand delivered to the Commission's offices or sent to the Commission," read the notice in part.
The public was given October 6, 2022 as the deadline to give their views.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) added that Kenyans can write to them on the same through its P.O. Box 30095, 00100, Nairobi or have them hand delivered to the Commission’s offices at Commission House, Harambee Avenue or by email: cas@publicservice.go.ke
According to the PSC, CASs will be appointed through a vigorous competitive recruitment exercise that will culminate to being nominated by the President and vetted by the National Assembly.
Those interested in the position will be required to possess a Bachelor’s degree from a recognized university and excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
They will also be expected to demonstrate ability to manage the administrative-political interface, articulate public policies and programmes, and undertake complex and high-pressure tasks that require engagements with multi-institutions and other public officers/offices among others.
In April 2021, High Court Judge Antony Mrima declared the position illegal noting that the law was not followed while being created. In addition, Cabinet Secretaries who continued to serve office without being vetted in 2017 were deemed to be in office illegally.
Uhuru at the time explained that those who would be holding the CAS role would be responsible for helping the Cabinet Secretaries to better coordinate affairs in their respective ministries.
"I have decided to establish a new position in government, the position of Chief Administrative Secretary in all our ministries,” Uhuru stated at the time.
Other roles included responding to issues touching on the portfolio assigned to the office, providing liaison with the National Assembly and Senate, providing liaison with County Governments on matters of concurrent mandate and common interest, providing inter-ministerial/sectoral co-ordination, representing the Cabinet Secretary at any meeting as instructed by the Cabinet Secretary and executing any other duties and responsibilities specifically assigned to the office by the Cabinet Secretary in furtherance of the interests of the Ministry.
The CAS was simply likened to an assistant minister as per the previous Constitution but was not defined in the 2010 Constitution.
Some of the CASs who held the position in Uhuru's government included Mercy Mwangangi, Wavinya Ndeti, Ababu Namwamba, Rachel Shebesh, Zack Kinuthia among others.
Health CAS Mercy Mwangangi addressing journalists on March 23, 2022. /MINISTRY OF HEALTH
