Agriculture CS Mwangi Kiunjuri defied President Uhuru Kenyatta's direct order to the Cabinet, raising speculations that his job may be on the line.
Kiunjuri on Thursday, October 24, 2019, was spotted alongside Jubilee Nominated Senator, Isaac Mwaura, who called for a press conference in Nairobi leading a brigade of Mt Kenya region's leaders in blasting Kenyatta's Building Bridges Initiative.
During the presser,the leaders poked holes into BBI, sounding a warning over the release of its highly anticipated report.
"We do not want an electoral college where a leader is elected from Parliament. We want one man one vote system. We will stand strong and read the report before explaining it to our people," Mwaura declared.
Kiunjuri's appearance was the first of its kind, as no CS has joined leaders at a press conference to dismiss the BBI with seemingly political intent.
On September 3, 2019, CSs were ordered to toe the line and support the initiative.
Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, Joseph Kinyua, listed support for BBI as a key performance area in Cabinet.
That means that the ministries would be graded based on how much they implement the recommendations that will be proposed by the team constituted by Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga.
Kiunjuri, however, distanced himself from attacking BBI, stating that he was out to show support for his friends as he himself was an ex-legislator.
“I am loyal to the president and I don't think anybody will be offended by me offering a solution when called upon. I am a senior member of the community with vast experience in leadership. I served as an MP for 15 years, an assistant minister for 10 years and now a Cabinet secretary,” Kiunjuri informed Nation.
The Mt Kenya leaders who issued a press conference against BBI are aligned to Deputy President William Ruto.
Kiunjuri's wavering stance once angered pro-BBI Nyeri Town MP, Ngunjiri Wambugu, who disrupted an event the CS had attended in June 2019.
