Arrogant and incompetent? Controversies continue to dog CS Murkomen

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen is among key figures close to President William Ruto who were fingered by Gen Z protesters last June for leading flashy lifestyles even as Kenyans continue to reel under the high cost of living partly blamed on high taxation.

He was forced to admit his weakness in purchasing expensive items but pointed out that he would correct his mistakes by diverting his cash into profitable investments.

“In this life we’re living, there are things that are vanity that you end up buying. I appreciate comments that have come from Kenyans. Had I taken this money to invest in the money market, it would have earned me interest. That is my weakness but I’m willing to correct myself,” he said during an interview on the Obinna TV show last July.

The CS revealed that he owns a Sh900,000 watch while the most expensive shoe is Sh80,000. Further, he said he also owns a Sh50,000 belt and a Sh20,000 tie. In total, his wardrobe was worth about Ksh 1.1 million at the time of the interview.

President Ruto also admitted that some of his allies may be annoying for living large and flaunting their wealth on social media, but attributed it to being new to power.

However, when he dismissed his entire Cabinet save for his then deputy Rigathi Gachagua and Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs CS Musalia Mudavadi, Murkomen was among CSs who many expected would not make a comeback in the reorganised Cabinet.

However, he was retained though Ruto moved him from the Roads and Transport docket to that of Youth Affairs, Sports and Creative Arts.

Many Gen Zs were not amused that the man they loathed was being appointed to oversee their affairs.

However, it is not just his opulence that made many to be critical of the former Elgeyo Marakwet Senator.

During his tenure at Transport, he was criticised over the handling of flooding at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) due to a leaking roof.

This is especially after he laid the blame on the Uhuru Kenyatta regime, which he accused of giving the job to unqualified contractors to renovate JKIA and other airports thus causing a huge mess.

“The previous government did shoddy work in the maintenance of the JKIA facility and other 12 airstrips across the country,” he said.

However, Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei said the problem persisting for over a year is a show of incompetence on the part of Murkomen.

“Lol to fix a leaking terminal roof in JKIA takes a whole year then kumbe our roads in Nandi County shall not be Fixed. This is the highest incompetence and lethargy of CS Murkomen who called me a fool a week ago. Kenyans can now see who is a fool now,” the Senator said.

Murkomen’s stay at the Youth Affairs ministry was without much controversy, largely because it was short-lived as he was moved to the Interior docket following the appointment of Kindiki Kithure to replace Gachagua after he was impeached last October.

The CS has severally been put in the spotlight as a result of rising insecurity, including terror attacks.

His failure to crackdown on errant PSV operators leading to increased road accidents also continues to dog him.

As Roads and Transport CS, he was criticised for failing to instill discipline on the roads, which has been lacking despite the stringent rules introduced by the late John Michuki.

Despite promising harsh punishment for those violating traffic laws, the death toll on the roads remained high.

“We care about the loss of lives. As your CS, I appreciate my predecessors including the famous John Michuki, who left a legacy of organizing the transport sector to be dignified. The one problem we never sorted is the road accidents. I will be that CS who will transition our country from the analogue system of enforcement in terms of road traffic to a digital system that is going to give us clear results that are going to protect the people of Kenya,” he told Citizen TV in an interview in April last year.

But not many were convinced about his ability to rein in road carnage, one of them being Machakos Deputy Governor Francis Mwangangi.

“Murkomen is my friend, but it seems like he is overwhelmed by his job and responsibilities. How many people have died on our roads? Who is the minister for roads? What is it the late John Njoroge Michuki did about our roads in this country that a youthful sharp lawyer like Murkomen can’t do,” he said last year.

Though the Cabinet was dismissed following the Gen Z protests, as Interior CS, he oversees the Traffic Police, which together with the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), which he oversaw as Transport CS, are charged with enforcing the law on the roads.

However, in March this year, Murkomen said that while strict enforcement of traffic laws and digitisation of road traffic management are on, he will not replicate Michuki to ensure they are obeyed.

“I said I was not going to replicate what Michuki did. It wasn’t right to see a Cabinet Secretary running around the roads stopping matatus and berating individuals,” the CS said.

However, it is increased insecurity that has mostly put him under pressure leading to Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale to demand his resignation last weekend.

Khalwale questioned why security agencies are unable to tackle criminality singling out the killing of a teacher in Mumias shortly after withdrawing money from a bank, a terror attack that killed quarry workers in Mandera and the murder of Kasipul MP Charles Ong’ondo Were in Nairobi.

“Waziri Murkomen, if you cannot assure us of security then you are not fit to be in the ministry of Internal Security (Interior)… our right, our lives, our lives. I have nothing against Waziri Murkomen but he has a job and responsibility to protect Kenyans. Hapa Mumias, mwalimu ndiye huyo amelala, ukienda Mandera, vijana waluhya wako kwa quarry wanafanya hustle yao wanauawa huko, ukija Nairobi, mheshimiwa Charles Ong’ondo Were anauawa, Murkomen where is the police, where is the security? If you can’t go home, we want someone else,” he said in Kakamega.

He later posted on X: “Murkomen, listen to me and listen well. If you can’t stop Kenyans from being butchered like chickens in their homes, then resign. Step aside for someone who has a spine.”

Cherargei also joined the fray, accusing Murkomen of incompetence and arrogance, which he said has put the lives of Kenyans in jeopardy.

“The Murkomen incompetence, arrogance and kiburi I saw years ago are now being seen by everyone. Unfortunately, incompetence is now costing lives which can’t be recovered. When it rains, it pours,” he wrote on X last Sunday while also sharing Khalwale’s post.

Khalwale has since told the Senate that he had held talks with Murkomen to discuss insecurity in the country after telling him to up his game.