Pressure mounts on Mombasa Governor Abdullswammad Nassir to rename cabinet

By Erick Ludeya

Mombasa Governor Abdullswammad Nassir is under immense pressure from human rights groups and local leaders to cancel the recent nominations he made for County Executive Committee Members (CECMs).

Politician Abdulsalaam Kassim is the latest to raise concerns over what he terms as a biased and unbalanced list from the governor.

The governor unveiled his cabinet early this week where he named his Deputy Francis as the CEC in charge of the Environment and Solid Waste Management docket, a position he has been holding briefly since they were elected.

Others who made the list are Emily Achieng (Water Natural Resources and Climate Change Resilience), Kenneth Muigai (Public Service Administration, Youth, Gender, Social Services and Sports) and Kibibi Abdallah (Blue Economy, Agriculture and Livestock.

There is also Mohammed Osman (Tourism, Culture and Trade), Dr Mbwarali Kame (Education and Digital Transformation), Evans Oanda (Finance and Economic Planning), Dr Swabah Ahmed (Health), Daniel Otieno (Transport and Infrastructure).

Dr Noah Akala has been appointed as the Chief of Staff, Mr Mahmoud Noor advisor in charge of Innovation and digital.

Others appointed to advisory roles are Mohammed Tenge (Politics), Goshi Juma who lost the Changamwe parliamentary seat will advise the county on youth and gender Affairs, Dorcas Mutheu (Urban Renewal) and Mr Gilbert Langat (Maritime Affairs).

However, there is a feeling among some leaders that the list does not represent the face of Mombasa.

“The list is purely a result of boardroom meetings that never put into consideration the cosmopolitan nature of this county, the needs of special interest groups and more so balancing across the six sub counties,”  local politician Abdulsalaam Kassim said.

Mr Kassim joins the growing list of descending voices who want the governor to recall the names and make fresh appointments.“He has no option but to recall the list and make a fresh list that takes into account the considerations of everyone in the county,” he said.

On Tuesday, Mombasa based human rights activists issued a joint statement where they called on the governor to review the list noting that it violates the County Government Act 17 of 2022. 

“It has come to our attention that current events at the Mombasa County Government are not living up to the expectations and the dictates of our constitution. While on the campaign trail, our Governor, His Excellency Abdullswammad Nassir promised to be transparent and honest in his public appointments to critical offices in the county,” the statement read.

It further adds: “We noticed with overwhelming contempt that several people applied for appointments in Mombasa County positions but the Governor only handpicked his cronies and those forced on him by high ranking party officials,”

Mohamed Abubakar a resident in Mombasa said that for Nassir to name his cabinet he must have consulted, he should have asked those concerned. He questioned the appointment of one Evans Ounda who is an employee of the national assembly.

Mr Abubakar argues that appointing Mr Ounda as  a representative of the Kisii community is an insult to the community that lives in the county.

“ If the governor wanted to appoint a Kisii, we are sure there are more than enough competent graduates to choose from like the veteran Finance expert Joshua Aroni. He should have asked the stakeholders instead of hiding in hotels to pick his own people,” he said
This comes after Mombasa senator Mohammed Faki  called on the governor to reconsider the nominations and provide one that satisfies all the six sub counties.In a letter to the governor,the senator claims that Changamwe,Jomvu and Kisauni sub counties were left out.“I note from the list of nominations there is no representation from Changamwe,Jomvu and Kisauni Sub Counties,” Faki said. Mr Nassir, who has been under pressure from civil societies and lawyers to appoint his cabinet to help him govern, expressed confidence in his newly appointed executives saying they are qualified and will offer the best potential for the residents.“This is the best list and I am confident that it will deliver what we promised to our people,” he said.The governor also attributed the delay in naming his cabinet to politics and pressure from powerful people.

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