Time has a way of turning three sixty on nearly anything; it did it to Uhuru's presidency, and it is all now history. John Kenyatta Since his resignation, Kenya's recently deceased president has received little media attention.
With the recent departure of his former cabinet, who held the fort until the day they formally convened their last cabinet meeting, which was presided over by President Ruto, a new cabinet was established the next day.
According to Kenya's Constitution, the President is held jointly and severally liable for the exercise of the Cabinet Secretaries' authority and the discharge of their duties.
The exit package for the departing president is well known, but what about his closest aides, the Cabinet Secretaries who carried out all of his administration's goals?
"A State officer serving on fixed term must serve on contract and be awarded a service gratuity at the conclusion of the term at the rate of 31 percent of yearly basic salary for each year served," said the Salaries and Remuneration Commission, which sets salaries for the present administration.
This award includes a gratuity and a monthly pension for former lawmakers who served between 1984 and 2001 in the year 2020, just a short time after Members of Parliament granted themselves sizeable pensions under the Parliamentary Pensions (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
It's likely that this roused Uhuru's Cabinet, which then started debating whether or not they could partake in a nice farewell. Unlike the legislature, the judiciary, and other members of the executive, the cabinet secretaries in 2020 remarked that they did not receive pensions upon leaving their high-ranking positions.
The Cabinet Secretaries stated that there was concern among some of them that some, if not all, of them might not be taken up in the next government. As a result, it is important to have a solid package or pension that will allow them to move on with their lives in comfort after their term is done.
According to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission's 2022 Kenya Gazette Notice, a CS now receives a base salary of Sh924,000 per month (SRC). The president, his deputy, and governors are entitled to a pension for life upon retirement equal to 31% of their base wage inside the executive.
The CSs depart with their final salaries plus a gratuity that is equal to 31% of their basic pay for each year of service.
As a result, the Cabinet Secretaries who served in the most recent administration will get up to Sh20.8 million in gratuity payments apiece.
Nevertheless, observers claim that this omission continues to be a weak point in the fight against corruption because, if the government does not take better care of the Cabinet Secretaries, who have access to budgets worth billions of shillings, they may decide to line their exit nests with "soft material" using their own means.
The Principal Secretaries, who work closely with the Cabinet Secretaries in government ministries, will accompany them on their departure and get compensation that is roughly comparable to that received by the CSs who have been in office since Uhuru Kenyatta took office in 2013.
The long-serving Najib Balala, who served as a cabinet minister under the Kibaki administration, James Macharia, Amina Mohamed, Fred Matiang'i Raychelle Omamo, and Adan Mohamed are among the veteran cabinet secretaries in Uhuru's administration since 2014. Each will receive a minimum gratuity of Sh20.8 million.
Simon Chelugui, who was retained as Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and Small Medium Enterprises, and Monica Juma, who was retained as Security Advisor to the President, are the only remaining members of Uhuru's cabinet in Ruto's administration (SMEs).
Cabinet Secretaries simply leave the public service and go back to their regular jobs, wherever they may be, when top state officials, such as the President and his deputy, the Chief Justice, and both Speakers of Parliament, retire knowing they will have a cushioned life full of benefits, security, and sizable pensions.
It's understandable why the majority of the current Cabinet Secretaries still experience this problem after leaving the "huge CS office," as one cabinet secretary in Kibaki's administration reportedly claimed.
Some of them actively participated in the events leading up to the most recent general elections and "uncharacteristically" beat drums in one direction or another. Although individuals in positions of authority have publicly stated that such activities are nothing more than "water under the bridge," the real test of their freedom is still to come.
Will their safety, freedom of association, and pursuit of a meager living be hindered by their previous deeds or statements as they go with little to show for their active involvement in government during their time?
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