This archive report was first published on 3 October 2019.
On October 2, 2019, President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed nine members to the National Land Commission (NLC), including Gershom Otachi as chairman, following their approval by parliament.
However, activist Okiya Omtatah swiftly moved to court, seeking to suspend the gazette notice issued by the President for the appointments.
Omtatah argued that due process was not followed in the nomination of the NLC chairman and eight members, citing an incompetently constituted selection panel that omitted required stakeholders' representatives.
He further alleged that the recruitment exercise was opaque, with failure to publish the results of the interviews conducted.
The High Court has temporarily stopped the swearing-in of the nine members pending the hearing of Omtatah's case.
