Court Declares Ruto’s Climate Council Appointments Unconstitutional
The High Court in Nairobi has ruled that President William Ruto’s appointments to the Climate Change Council were unconstitutional.
The decision was delivered on Friday, April 2, by Justice Lawrence Mugambi, who nullified the appointment of four individuals to the Council due to the government’s failure to ensure sufficient public involvement in the process.
In his ruling, Justice Mugambi emphasized that the government did not engage the public adequately before naming the four appointees.
As a result, he ordered the government to begin a fresh nomination process and complete it within 90 days from the date of the ruling.
This judgment came after a prior court order that had temporarily blocked the four appointees—Emily Mwende, John Kioli, Umar Omar, and George Odera—from taking office. That earlier order had been issued pending the outcome of a legal petition filed against their selection.
In February 2023, Justice Mugure Thande suspended the appointments after a lobby group moved to court, challenging the manner in which the four members were selected.
The group raised several concerns, claiming that the appointments lacked transparency and competitiveness. They also pointed out that the process did not meet legal requirements for public participation.
The petitioners argued that civil society groups involved in climate change efforts in Kenya were completely excluded from the appointment process, which they said undermined inclusivity and fairness.
Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi, who was serving as the Attorney General at the time of the appointments, was also named as a respondent in the petition.
The court’s decision is seen as a major step toward ensuring transparency, fairness, and proper procedures in government appointments, especially in matters as important as climate change governance.
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