This archive report was first published on 16 July 2020.
Kenya has finally filled the vacant Auditor General position, a year after Edward Ouko's retirement in August 2019. Nancy Janet Kabui Gathungu, the Director of Audit at the Auditor-General's office, has been endorsed by the National Assembly Finance and Planning Committee for the role.
According to sources, President Uhuru earlier nominated Gathungu after she emerged first among top three candidates. She will now wait for a formal presidential appointment and oath-taking to take over the AG position.
As the new Auditor General, Gathungu will serve for a non-renewable 8-year term. She is currently 51 years old and has been in her current position since February 2014, where she is answerable to five deputy auditor-generals who will now become her juniors once she gets the job.
Ms Gathungu's appointment comes after she was initially among the 17 nominees that the selection panel chaired by Mr Sammy Onyango recommended to President Kenyatta as not qualified for the job. However, her nomination by the President has now cleared the way for her to take up the position.
Mr Ouko was the first auditor-general under the 2010 Constitution. His retirement in August 2019 left the position vacant for over a year, until Gathungu's appointment.
