Treasury CS John Mbadi advised the national the government to refrain from rewarding failed politicians with appointments.
Mbadi has suggested that in order for commercial government-owned parastatals to thrive, the decision to promote political rejects to top positions should be reconsidered.
The CS was speaking in Nairobi as the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) launched its Bond Market Reforms.
“We should move away from government-owned enterprises being a dumping ground for failed politicians,” Mbadi urged.
Mbadi’s position is likely to be heavily criticized because, as CS, the law grants him the authority to make parastatal appointments on behalf of the President.
As a result, he requested that the President use objective reasoning when making parastatal appointments in order to improve their status.
Mbadi also revealed that the government was currently implementing reforms aimed at revitalizing the Ownership Policy for Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs), in accordance with Cabinet approval in November 2023.
The policy established a framework to improve GOEs’ corporate governance, accountability, and performance, bringing them closer to the standards used for publicly traded companies.
President William Ruto appointed senior politicians who ran on United Democratic Alliance tickets but did not win elective seats to high-level positions in various sectors of the economy, including state parastatals.
Caleb Kositany, a former Member of Parliament for Soy, was appointed to chair the board of the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).
Since taking over the Treasury Ministry, Mbadi has faced the difficult task of reshaping Kenya’s fiscal architecture and policy in order to address the government’s financial deficits.
He has since announced policy proposals and decisions, including the formation of a steering committee to oversee the transition from cash-based to accrual-based accounting across all levels of government.
Mbadi was unclear about whether the need to stop awarding political rejects with parastatal appointments would be translated into policy immediately.
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