President William Ruto has nominated fifty-one candidates for Principal Secretary posts.This comes after the Public Service Commission (PSC) finalized the interviews for 585 candidates who were shortlisted for Principal Secretary positions.

The commission which conducted the interview between October 12 and October 22, recommended the names of the successful applicants for nomination by the President.

“It is noted that his excellency Hon. William Samoei Ruto following the recommendation of the Public Service Commission has on this second day of November 2022 caused nominations to the ranks of Principal Secretaries,” head of public service Felix Koskei said in a statement.

The President has forwarded the names to the National Assembly for vetting and approval by departmental committees before they are formally appointed to take office.

The National Assembly on Tuesday embarked on election of committee chairpersons and their deputies, a process that will run up to Thursday.

“The Presidential Action is pursuant to Article 155 (3)(a) of the Constitution. By dint of the Executive Action, the nominations have been transmitted to the National Assembly for the consideration and approval by Parliament in accordance with the Public Appointments (Parliamentary Approval) Act (No. 33 of 2011)” reads the statement.

Notable appointments include 11 women. Among August election losers on the list include Nixon Korir, Jonathan Mueke, Alex Wachira and Beatrice Inyangala.

Kenyans on Twitter, however, suggest the appointments were skewed in favour of certain communities and that loyalties, and political losers were heavily rewarded.

There are also suggestions that the appointment did not adhere to the two-third gender rule with only 11 appointees out of 51 being women.