[kictanet] ICT Authority Board Appointments Quashed by the High Court

Sat Aug 9 15:50:20 EAT 2014

Walu, My narrow definition of a civil servant would be anybody paid
from the Exchequer. In this narrow defination, if a parastatal is
generating it's own income, (like some public universities and
government owned companies), then their employees are not civil
servants. That is why recruitment in these "non civil service"
entities is not done by PSC or any governmental statutory entity. In
my proposed model, even if the government comes up with austerity
measures (like staff rationalization, reducing expenditure) or
populist mechanisms (like hiking salaries, giving subsidies,
minorities empowerment), the governmental "non civil service entities"
should not be affected. Currently as it stands, when the government is
implementing austerity measures, the policy affects even the profit
making fully owned government subsidiaries and universities. This
should not be the case.

On 09/08/2014, Walubengo J via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
> Ngigi,
>
> That's a fair argument. Except that Universities (Public or Private) are not
> your typical organisation. There is usually that thing called Academic
> Freedom. We tend to be entitled to, and defend our own thinking - and
> reserve the right to disagree with someones else thinking. Irrespective of
> whether it is the Vice Chancellor, the Minister or the President who is
> having contrary opinion.
>
> I think someone with this background or culture is infact more "independent"
> than someone who sits on a board representing specific and narrow interests,
> be they commercial, political or otherwise.  In another words, as an
> academic, I can disagree with my boss on an issue and live to earn my salary
> the following day, because my terms of employment guarantee my my academic
> freedom/right to disagree. Not quite sure this applies in the private sector
> :-)
>
> Nevertheless, your argument does hold some water, but perhaps applies only
> to folks in what we used to call "Central" and now "National" Government
> a.k.a the CORE civil servants.  I still dont think Public University dons
> fall in this category of core civil service. But as @Mwendwa said, I could
> be biased..
>
> walu.
>
> --------------------------------------------
> On Sat, 8/9/14, Ngigi Waithaka <ngigi at at.co.ke> wrote:
>
>  Subject: Re: [kictanet] ICT Authority Board Appointments Quashed by the
> High Court
>  To: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>,
> "John Walubengo" <jwalu at yahoo.com>
>  Date: Saturday, August 9, 2014, 12:11 PM
>
>  Walu,
>  It could be that Public Servants sitting in
>  boards of Public bodies is an 'incestious'
>  relationship that does not allow for the *independence* that
>  external members of a board are supposed to bring to the
>  table.
>
>  Take your case, you are at MMU, which is under
>  Min ICT,  then you get to be a board member at CAK, also
>  under Min ICT.
>  One phone call from you know who and you
>  basically sing their story :-)
>  Waithaka Ngigi
>  Alliance Technologies
>
>  Nairobi, Kenya
>  www.A1.io
>  On 9 Aug 2014 12:00,
>  "Walubengo J via kictanet" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>  wrote:
>
>  Mwendwa,
>
>
>
>  am three quarters(3/4) of a don, one quarter (1/4) to go
>  before am a full don :-)
>
>
>
>  Anyway, my beef in all this saga is that the Kenya
>  Communications Act (revised 2013) has a clause that
>  stipulate that public servants (including dons in PUBLIC
>  universities) should not sit on some boards including the
>  Communication Authority, Universal Service, ICT Authority
>  amongst others.  It however does not bar dons from PRIVATE
>  universities to sit on these very boards.
>
>
>
>
>  I am just not able to understand the rationale behind this -
>  perhaps I will when I complete the remaining 1/4 of my
>  studies.  But meanwhile the drafters of this clause are on
>  this list (National Communication Secretariate lurkers :-).
>  Maybe they could break it down for us in simple english. But
>  bottom line, I want to believe nobody should be barred
>  whether they come from private or public university.
>
>
>
>
>  walu.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>  --------------------------------------------
>
>  On Fri, 8/8/14, Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva at transworldafrica.com>
>  wrote:
>
>
>
>   Subject: Re: [kictanet] ICT Authority Board Appointments
>  Quashed by the High Court
>
>   To: "Walubengo J" <jwalu at yahoo.com>,
>  "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>
>
>   Date: Friday, August 8, 2014, 10:29 PM
>
>
>
>   Walu, you might have a
>
>   point, but being a don yourself (or on the way
>
>   to donship), I think your argument is biased.
>
>   Any professional at any
>
>   educational level
>
>   can give good advice to national boards. Most
>
>   successful Ministers at the Kibaki regime were
>
>   not necessarily PhD
>
>   holders.
>
>
>
>   I am not discounting the value
>
>   of education at all, and in 5 years, I
>
>   will
>
>   be a don too.
>
>
>
>   And I agree,
>
>   the law is biased by preventing public university
>
>   employees from sitting on public boards but
>
>   allowing private
>
>   university employees and
>
>   other private citizens to sit on the same
>
>   boards. Although I have a contradictory view
>
>   that education and
>
>   research will suffer if
>
>   the said professors are overloaded with side
>
>   jobs (something they will still do with private
>
>   consultancies). It's a
>
>   catch22
>
>
>
>   On 08/08/2014, Walubengo J via
>
>   kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>
>   wrote:
>
>   >
>
>   >
>
>   > @Kamotho,
>
>   >
>
>   > am yet to read the full ruling. But if i
>
>   recall well the key contention/plea
>
>   > was
>
>   that the appointment of Public University staff into
>  the
>
>   various ICT
>
>   > Boards to be be found
>
>   illegal.
>
>   >
>
>   > it
>
>   appears the judges are in agreement. However,
>  considering
>
>   the amount of
>
>   > intelkectual talent
>
>   within public universities - dont you think it is
>
>   > discriminatory that that group of staff
>
>   are barred from contributing to
>
>   >
>
>   national development at a Board level?
>
>   >
>
>   > Is it time to review
>
>   this clause or it does serve the purpose?
>
>   >
>
>   > walu.
>
>   >
>
>   >
>
>   >
>
>   ------------------------------
>
>   > On Fri,
>
>   Aug 8, 2014 1:19 PM AST (Arabian) Kamotho Njenga via
>
>   kictanet
>
>   > wrote:
>
>   >
>
>   >>The illegal appointments made by the
>
>   ICT Cabinet Secretary, Dr Fred
>
>   >>Matiang'i have been quashed by the
>
>   High Court. Details on the background
>
>   >>and the orders of the court are
>
>   available at
>
>  >>http://www.ictak.or.ke/resources/news-and-events/235-statement-on-the-high-court-ruling-regarding-appointments-to-the-board-of-the-kenya-ict-authority-board
>
>
>   >>
>
>   >>For the
>
>   avoidance of doubt, partial implications of the
>  certiorari
>
>   orders
>
>   >>are that the impugned board
>
>   was illegal *ab initio*. So it is like the
>
>   >>board never existed. Reports
>
>   attributable to the CS are that he plans to
>
>   >>appeal the decision. He has an inherent
>
>   right to do so. What must be clear
>
>   >>is that the quash orders are in full
>
>   force w.e.f yesterday and the board
>
>   >>cannot purport to transact or to be
>
>   seen to do so.
>
>   >>
>
>   >>This is a crisis the Cabinet secretary
>
>   has precipitated himself because of
>
>   >>a trademark unilateralism approach and
>
>   failure to engage. Any attempt by
>
>   >>any person whatsoever to overlook the
>
>   prescriptions of the court's decree
>
>   >>has obvious sanctions.
>
>   >>
>
>   >>Kamotho
>
>   >
>
>   >
>
>   >
>
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>   ______________________
>
>   Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
>
>   twitter.com/lordmwesh
>
>
>
>   The best athletes never started as the best
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>   not think big? - Donald Trump.
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> people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and
> development.
>
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> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
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-- 
______________________
Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
twitter.com/lordmwesh

The best athletes never started as the best athletes.
You have to think anyway, so why not think big? - Donald Trump.
"You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take." - Wayne Gretzky.
Tackle the biggest frog first.
I will persist until I succeed - Og Mandino.