A Jubilee official wants the Party Secretary-General Raphael Tuju relinquished of his duties with immediate effect because he is a state officer.
The petitioner, Patrick Kabundu, the party’s Mombasa County secretary has now moved to the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal seeking to bar all state officers from holding positions in their respective political parties with Tuju being his main target.
He argued that it is undemocratic for a leader in a party to serve as a state officer because of the conflict of interest. He opined that the officials serving state and parties at the same are more likely to be biased when handling issues of national interest.
He also said Tuju and other state officers who are still officials in their respective parties have contravened Article 77(2) of the Constitution hence they should be kicked out of office to pave way for other leaders.
“The officers who had taken the oath of office had sworn to protect the Constitution and that accordingly, they should not be in breach of it. Jubilee leaders have contravened the Constitution by holding a political party post while they are State officers,” he said, as quoted by Daily Nation.
President Uhuru Kenyatta named Tuju as Chief Administrative Secretary without a portfolio but he is yet to surrender the position in Jubilee yet he is considered a state officer.