In its orders, the court directed that any gazette notice appointing or reappointing members of the current board be retained and suspended until the next mention date, unless the court extends the orders.
“….an interim conservatory order lasting up to the next mention date unless extended by this court shall issue restraining or suspending any gazette notice re appointing the members of the current board who may be due for reappointment for the board of KETRACO,” Justice Lawrence Mugambi ruled.
The judge said that the matter should be heard within 20 days.
The ruling follows a petition filed by Benjamin Okumu, who accuses the KETRACO Board of Directors of violating constitutional provisions on national values and principles of governance, particularly inclusivity and ethnic diversity in public appointments.
In court papers, Okumu alleges that the board oversaw recruitment and appointments that disproportionately favoured one ethnic community at the expense of national diversity.
“That currently, five (5) out of eight (8) senior executive positions are held by individuals from a single community, amounting to approximately sixty-three percent (63%) of EXCOM,” reads part of the petition.
The petition further claims that following the appointment of the current board, several senior executives were removed and replaced within a short period.
As a result, five out of nine top executive positions are now allegedly held by individuals from one ethnic community, representing about 63 per cent of the Executive Committee of Management.
Okumu also accuses Mercylynate Chepkirui, who heads the Board’s Human Resource Committee, of enabling the dismissal of non-Kalenjin managers.
“Given the outcome of the recruitment processes, the Petitioner avers that interference, bias and ethnic favouritism by the Chairperson of the Committee and the Board as a whole cannot reasonably be ruled out,” the court documents state.
The petitioner argues that the alleged actions contravene constitutional requirements on fair competition, merit, and representation of Kenya’s diverse communities in public service.
