Kenya Roads Board DG sued over ‘illegal appointment’ of Aisha Jumwa as chair
He is accused of allegedly manipulating the internal systems to represent a false narrative of her nomination
Kenya Roads Board Director General, Rashid Khamisi Mohammed, has been sued for allegedly facilitating the appointment of former Cabinet Secretary Aisha Jumwa as the chairperson in violation of the law.
In a petition filed by the Bunge la Mwananchi President Francis Awino, Mohammed has been accused of enabling and facilitating the unlawful appointment of Jumwa, contravening Section 7 of the Kenya Roads Board Act 1999 and articles 73 (2) and 232 (1) (g) of the Constitution.
Awino accuses Mohammed of allegedly manipulating the internal systems to represent a false narrative of Jumwa’s nomination for the position of board chair.
“Despite being the Chief Executive Officer of KRB and the statutory accounting officer, the respondent willingly abdicated his legal duties to safeguard institutional integrity and compliance with the constitution, Kenya Roads Board and the relevant statutes,” the petitioner says.
In the petition, he claims Mohammed was fully aware that the appointment of Jumwa was flawed as it did not meet the requirements under the KRB Act.
“Rather than raising an alarm or advice against the irregular appointment, the respondent actively facilitated the impugned appointment by endorsing it, internally suppressing objections, ensuring no proper vetting or consultations,” he states.
At the same time, he accuses Mohammed of committing procurement irregularities at the parastatal as well as misuse of funds allocated under various allocations like the Maintenance Initiative Account.
“The respondent has repeatedly breached procurement laws by awarding contracts to cronies and cancelling contracts upon failure to secure bribes and paying for goods and services not delivered,” he says in the petition.
Jumwa was appointed as the chairperson of the Kenya Roads Board by the Transport Cabinet Secretary, Davis Chirchir, early in the year for a period of three years.
Her appointment was, however, rejected by the Institution of Engineers Kenya (IEK), which said she does not qualify for the position, adding that it requires an engineer by profession.
IEK raised concerns that her appointment did not align with the KRB Act, particularly the membership and the selection process.
The engineer’s body explained that the Kenya Roads Board is heavily involved in engineering work such as overseeing the condition of roads, advising on standards of road construction, and ensuring projects are carried out effectively from a technical standpoint.
