The six important duties President Kenyatta cannot exercise
President Uhuru Kenyatta lost some crucial powers on the eve of the August 9, 2022 polls as he waits to hand over power to the President-elect.
According to Article 134 (2) of the Kenyan constitution, President Kenyatta lost authority to carry out six important duties that he used to do before.
These include:
1. Appointing judges – President Kenyatta has no power to appoint judges of the supreme court, the court of appeal and the High court.
2. Nomination/appointing of public officers – The Head of State also has no power to appoint or nominate any other public officer such as Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) officials, those from the Teachers Service Commission, (TSC) among others.
3. Dismissal of Cabinet Secretaries – The President has also lost power to dismiss any Cabinet Secretary, including those like Tourism’s Najib Balala, who have publicly congratulated his opponent namely President-elect William Ruto.
4. Dismiss/appoint ambassadors – President Kenyatta currently has no power to appoint or dismiss high commissioner’s ambassadors or diplomatic or consular representatives.
5. Power of mercy – Until he hands over power to the fifth president, President Kenyatta has no power to exercise the power of mercy. The last time president Kenyatta carried out this duty was on June 1, 2022 during the Madaraka celebration. He pardoned 3,908 inmates who had petty offenders.
6. Confer of honors – He also has no authority to confer honors in the name of the people and the Republic. President Kenyatta carried out this duty on July 8, this year where he conferred honors to 508 Kenyans.
However, president Kenyatta has the power and authority to exercise other duties such as being the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.