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A House committee has acceded to a request from the Attorney-General Justin Muturi that his office be de-linked from the Public Service Commission (PSC) on grounds that it is frustrating the hiring of state counsel.

In a report to the National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) chaired by Tharaka MP George Murugara, the lawmakers agreed to amend the Attorney General Act 2012 as contained in the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) to provide for the autonomy of the office and its powers to recruit, appoint, promote and discipline its officers.

The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has lost 130 senior state counsel between January 2015 and December 2023 on account of poor remuneration and lack of career progression.

Reads the report: “The house approves the provisions of the bull relating to the Office of the Attorney General act 2012 with amendments to provide for the autonomy of the office and its powers to recruit, appoint, promote and discipline officers.”

In the report, the committee however argued that any powers given to the Attorney General with regard to the said powers would have to be subjected to an appropriate advisory board to ensure adherence to established human resource principles and standards required within the public service.
Legal policy management

Reads the report; “The office of the Attorney General has seen an expansion of its responsibilities including legal policy management, anti-corruption strategies and oversight of legal sector institutions under executive order No 2 of 2023.”

While acceding to the request, the committee argued that the current legal landscape presents challenges for the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) such as increased involvement in international legal matters, constitutional litigation and infrastructural projects which strain its resources and capacity.

The committee also argued that currently OAG operates at less than half of its approved establishment as various departments within the department, notably the government transaction divisions operate with significantly fewer staff members than required leading to increased workload and compromised service quality.

It also explained that its decision is based on the fact that there is a remuneration disparity between state counsel at the OAG and their counterparts in other public legal sector institutions which ultimately contributes to demotivation and loss of experienced staff.

Reads the bill: “The OAG & Department of Justice (DOJ) faces limitations in recruitment, promotion, and management of staff, partly due to its classification as a state department within the executive branch.

The Constitution grants Parliament a wide legislative mandate that allows prescribing the manner in which certain categories of public officers may be recruited, appointed and promoted. The amendments proposed with regard to the Office of the Attorney-General Act, 2012 (No. 49 of 2012) are therefore before the House for consideration and enactment, if the House so decides.”

The decision of the committee came after Muturi, the Judiciary, Office of The Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP), Law Society of Kenya (LSK) supported the move to have the OAG be autonomous from the PSC.