President William Ruto has revoked the appointment of Irungu Nyakera as the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) board chairperson after he skipped the president’s Mt Kenya tour.

In a gazette notice dated April 1, 2025, Ruto has appointed Samuel Waweru as the new chairperson.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by section 43 (1) (a) of the Tourism Act, as read together with section 51 (1) of the Interpretation and General Provisions Act, I, William Samoei Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, appoint Samuel Waweru Mwangi to be the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre, for a period of three (3) years, with effect from the 1st April, 2025. The appointment of Irunga Nyakera is revoked,” the gazette notice stated.

Nyakera was appointed to the position in August 2024, replacing former Makueni deputy governor Adelina Mwau.

This comes days after Nyakera vowed to skip Ruto’s Mt Kenya tour, saying that he is still in school at Oxford University.

“I will not be present during the President’s upcoming visit to Mt Kenya as I am still in school at Oxford University. That said, I want to share my message with the people and leaders of Mt Kenya,” Nyakera stated.

In his message to Mt Kenya residents and leaders, Nyakera urged them to shun politics during the visit and instead focus on development.

“In the last election, Mt Kenya voted for development and development, as we all know, comes through the Office of the President. When he visits next week, let our focus be on that development – not on the politics,” he added.

“History has taught us harsh lessons. When Mzee Jomo Kenyatta visited Kisumu with Jaramogi Oginga Odinga and was received with hostility, development in that region came to a halt for decades. Similarly, in President Uhuru’s final term, Mt Kenya suffered because we allowed politics to override cooperation and watched development bypass us. Let us not repeat the same mistakes. A time for politics will come—but it is not now, and it is certainly not next week. This is a time to engage constructively, to secure what we voted for, and to prioritize the needs of our people.”