This archive report was first published on 10 October 2019.
October 10, 2019, marked the beginning of intense lobbying for the positions of Nandi county executive and county secretary. Four nominees, Philemon Bureti, Drice Rono, Grace Sugut, and Francis Sang, appeared before the seven-member panel to be vetted.
Philemon Bureti, the nominee for lands, environment, natural resources, water, and sanitation, was the first to face the panel. He was tasked with explaining how and where he acquired his academic qualifications, which were deemed suspicious by the committee.
When questioned about his doctorate degree, which he claimed to have obtained in just two years, Bureti explained that the regulations requiring published journals for a PhD were introduced in 2013, after he had already graduated in 2003. The chair of the committee, Joshua Kiptoo, ordered Bureti to deliver the required documents and his identity card for further interrogation.
Drice Rono, the nominee for transport and infrastructure, claimed that he could rectify the anomalies committed by his predecessors within a month, citing his experience as a public works engineer in Samburu county.
Grace Sugut, the nominee for education, faced an uphill task due to the department's history of misappropriation of funds and poor workmanship, particularly in the ECD classes.
The committee is also tasked with vetting six members for the county public service board, with a report to be submitted for consideration within two weeks.
