Lamu County on Tuesday rejected Governor Issa Timamy’s deputy governor nominee James Gichu for the second time in a row.
This is after the motion on the nomination presented in the assembly failed to garner a simple majority. Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) voted 9 against 4, with six abstaining.
A motion for the approval of the deputy governor must be supported by a majority of vote of the MCAs, which is ten, before swearing in of the appointee.
The failure of the second motion to garner 51 per cent of votes which amounts to 10 implies that Governor Timamy will have to go back to the drawing board and make a new appointment.
Previously on October 30, the approval of the deputy governor nominee failed to sail through after a tie in votes of 9 – 9 failing to surpass the required threshold.
Out of the 18 MCAs present, nine voted against the motion while another nine supported it with only one being absent. As such, the motion failed to garner a simple majority vote of more than 51 per cent of the members.
James Gichu was appointed by Governor Timamy on Wednesday, October 16, after the death of former Deputy Governor Raphael Munyua Ndung'u who passed away on September 6, 2024, while receiving treatment at a Nairobi hospital.
The seat fell vacant for over a month until Gichu’s appointment. As required by law, the governor presented Gichu’s name to the county assembly for vetting and approval.
The law provides that if the deputy governor passes away, the office shall be declared vacant and the governor is at liberty to make an appointment of his deputy governor with the County Assembly's approval.
Prior to his appointment, Gichu served as a County Executive Committee Member (CECM) in charge of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Food Security in the County in the same county.
Governor Timamy has been operating for over two and half months without a deputy governor which constitutionally strains his office as he requires a deputy to execute some official duties.
