By Anchor Writers
Machakos, Tuesday — A shake-up has taken place at the Machakos County Assembly with Mr. Peter Mbatha assuming office as Acting Clerk, replacing Acting Clerk Mr. Dennis Mutui.
The changes were effected during a session of the County Assembly Service Board (CASB) chaired by Speaker Anne Kiusya.
To seal Mutui’s fate, the changes were published today in a Special Kenya Gazette Notice.
The notice said Deputy Clerk- Administration Mr. Peter Muema Mbatha had been appointed as Acting Clerk at a meeting of the CPSB.
The notice consequently revoked the appointment of Mr Mutui. Its publication on a special issue means the county could not wait till Friday when the notices are published.
Both Mr. Mutui and Mr. Mbatha are substantive Deputy Clerks of the Assembly, but the transition ends a dramatic long stint in which Mr. Mutui has held the Clerk’s office in an acting capacity beyond the six-month limit allowed in public service.
Advertisement to fill the position substantively has been stalled by a court case filed by his predecessor, who claims to have been removed unlawfully.
Political undertones have also weighed heavily on the position and its exiting occupant, ostensibly over his enabler role in Governor Wavinya Ndeti’s attempt to remove Speaker Kiusya.
The speaker has endured unrelenting pressure for his confirmation from Mutui’s uncle, Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka.
Musyoka incidentally has several relatives populating key positions in the Machakos County Government, including the cabinet.
At the same time, insiders say Mutui’s shifting political loyalties — initially backing Speaker Kiusya before aligning himself with Governor Wavinya Ndeti and her allies in the Assembly — have irredeemably complicated his tenure.
Observers accuse him of overstepping his role as a civil servant, alleging that he “played politics by passing the ball to pro-Wavinya MCAs and enabling them to score even from offside positions instead of remaining neutral.”
The County Assembly Service Board, which is a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal, is established under Section 12 of the County Governments Act.
Its functions are further grounded in Section 4 of the County Assembly Services Act, which establishes the County Assembly Service as an institution of exemplary administrative and technical competence.
The Board is composed of the Speaker as chairperson, a vice-chairperson elected from among MCAs, one other MCA and one man and one woman appointed by the County Assembly to represent the public.
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