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The National Assembly has been recalled from recess to vet individuals nominated to the Cabinet by President William Ruto.

These include former Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo and Nakuru counterpart Lee Kinyanjui to take over the Agriculture, ICT and Trade dockets, respectively.

Vetting State officers nominated by the President is a key role assigned to Parliament by the Constitution. Parliament serves as a sieving instrument to ensure that those nominated to these positions are qualified for them and meet the threshold set out in Chapter Six of the Constitution on leadership and integrity.

This is meant to cure a situation in which the presidency may make appointments on the basis of political expediency and survival. It is also meant to ensure that public appointments are not only made on merit but also reflect the country’s diversity as proclaimed in the preamble of the Constitution.

The vetting also opens an important window for the participation of citizens, who wield the sovereign power that is delegated to the three arms of government: the Executive, Judiciary and the Legislature. Ordinary Kenyans may participate in the process by making presentations before the vetting committees and through memoranda.

The other important consideration is Article 10 of the Constitution that spells out the national values and principles of governance binding all State organs, State officers, and public officers.

The Constitution highlights patriotism, national unity, sharing and devolution of power, the rule of law, democracy, participation of the people, human dignity, equity and social justice.

The others are inclusiveness, equality, human rights, non-discrimination, protection of the marginalised, good governance, integrity, transparency, accountability and sustainable development.

Simply, the appointments must be done in a manner that demonstrates respect for the Constitution and the people of Kenya.

However, history has shown that Parliament has consistently abrogated its role and only coming out to rubber-stamp the decisions of the presidency.

This Parliament has approved individuals for various positions who later turned out to be incompetent charlatans once appointed. That is why we are asking Kenyans to be vigilant and ensure that the vetting process is beyond reproach.