S e p a r a t i o n o f p owe r s i n K e n y a ’s d e v o l v e d a dmi n i s t r a t i v e s y s t em the chief justice serve as chairpersons was meant to limit the influence of the executive and further preserve the principle of separation of powers. Going by the experience under the old constitution, where the executive muzzled and controlled both the legislature and the judiciary through the budgetary process, the creation of the PSC, CASB and JSC was meant to give both the legislature and the judiciary some control over budget, human resource management and their agenda.8 Earlier successes The performance of these three executive organs in the three arms of government, one at the national level and two at the county level, has so far been above board. For instance, the PSC, in respect to the constitutional provisions, independently and successfully recruited and recommended to the President the appointment9 of 22 principal secretaries out of a compiled list of 66 that were interviewed. This was a great departure from the old dispensation where the President had the exclusive right to appoint whomever he considered suitable to serve as principal secretaries. The JSC is on record for exercising its disciplinary control powers, leading to the removal from office of the deputy chief justice over allegations of misconduct in public, in line with its constitutional powers.10 An example of operational independence is the recent decision by the JSC to refuse to honour parliamentary summons to appear before the House Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs over the JSC decision to suspend its chief registrar over allegations of abuse of office.11 Following nationwide protests over MPs’ demands for a salary increment, the PSC successfully negotiated conditions and terms of service with the Salaries and Remuneration Commission – a body that is constitutionally mandated to set salaries and benefits for state and public officers. Despite their infancy status, these key executive organs within the three arms of national government have performed fairly well in ensuring that the principle of separation of powers is upheld. The administrative architecture of the county government The key principles and objectives of devolution under the 2010 constitution include the promotion and accountable exercise of power; self-governance by the people; equitable share of resources; and the decentralisation of state organs, functions and services from the capital of Kenya, among others.12 Beyond these objects, the constitution specifies that the county government will consist of the county assembly and the county executive. Further, the constitution requires the county government to decentralise its functions and the provision of services to the extent that it is efficient and practicable to do so.13 To put these provisions into practice and create a county administrative structure, parliament passed the Urban Areas and Cities Act 2011, which specifies how cities and urban areas are managed, and the County Governments Act 2012, which outlines the structure of the administrative system in rural areas. At the apex of the county executive arm is the county cabinet known as the County Executive Committee (CEC), made up of no more than ten members. Each member of the CEC is in charge of a county department (ministry). Each county government has a County Public Service Board (CPSB) composed of seven members who are recruited and appointed by the governor subject to county assembly approval. Like the PSC at the national level, the CPSB is charged with the responsibility of creating and abolishing offices within the county government, staffing and disciplinary control. The CPSB competitively recruits chief officers (equivalent to principal secretaries at the national level) who serve as the authorised officers in each department.14 A salient point to note is the system of checks and balances employed at the national level of vetting appointed officials by the National Assembly, which is also replicated at the county level by the county assembly. The vetting process is meant to ensure that the appointees reflect the diversity of Kenyan communities and the promotion of fairness and merit so that the executive does not use his/her appointing powers to entrench ethnicity and nepotism in the public service, as was the case under the old regime. The administrative units below the County Executive Committee (CEC) Below the CEC, the county administrative units are divided into urban areas and cities on the one hand and rural areas on the other hand, with both ends having three-tier administrative units of government as depicted in Figure 1. In terms of structure, the county administration, especially in rural areas and townships, is highly hierarchical and centralised as depicted by the reporting line from the village administrator to the respective chief officer. The underlying objective of this structure is to promote efficiency in decision-making and, importantly, political accountability. In line with Denhardt and Denhardt (2003) under the old traditional public administration, accountability in the rural areas and cities ensures that administrators adhere to the standards, rules and procedures established by law.15 It is envisaged that key personnel, to ensure compliance with the law, will do checks and balances through hierarchical supervision, performance evaluation systems and oversight. From a decentralisation point of view, the rural and township administrative structure fosters a deconcentrated form of decentralisation. The administrative structure in cities and municipalities embraces the new public management model. Cities and municipalities will be corporate bodies with both delegated executive and legislative powers. Although cities and Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2013/14 15
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