EACC advised Youth Fund not to appoint Namuye as CEO

The tenure of suspended acting Chief Executive Officer of the Youth Fund Catherine Namuye is now a point of interest for an officer who was confirmed as CEO only to be demoted in a few months. Namuye told Parliament of her uncertain designation that point to an earlier adverse finding of the ethics body EACC.

However, questions arise why she was allowed to continue serving at the board despite EACC’s recommendation. This even as the Nyeri family whose son a driver at the embattled fund who died in mysterious circumstances while on official duty in Mombasa, told of their desire for closure.

Her tenure at the Youth Fund may have ran for just about three years, but the months in that tenure tell of an officer uncertain of her fate and actions.

Namuye was first appointed as acting CEO in February 2013 upon the suspension of the then CEO Juma Mwatata. Mwatata was sent packing over allegations of purchasing 1,050 hatching machines at a cost of 208 million shillings without the board’s approval.

Since February 2013, Namuye was in an acting capacity until she was controversially and irregularly confirmed by the Youth Fund board chair Bruce Odhiambo around January 2015. Such an appointment can only be done by the Cabinet Secretary upon the board’s recommendation of three names of qualified candidates.

But months into her new position, she would lose the position in a letter by the same Odhiambo who accused her of among other things, non-performance.

Behind the scenes, the EACC had written an adverse report against Namuye in regards to interviews that had been conducted by the board in search of a substantive CEO.

EACC advised that she be left out of any appointment. When the list of names was submitted to the then Cabinet Secretary in charges of youth affairs Anne Waiguru, no appointment was done, instead, Namuye continued to serve.

Meanwhile, the family of Simon Mwangi who lost his life in October 2015 while on duty is yet to heal. More than 4 months after Mwangi’s send off the tears won’t go away as they were awakened by Namuye’s submission before PIC Thursday that his death was suspicious.

Reports indicate that Mwangi’s body was found afloat a swimming pool. Post mortem indicated  a scar on Mwangi’s head in the back as if hit with a blunt object. He had vomited before he breathed his last. The suspicion being that he could have overheard details of the rot at the fund between two senior officials he was ferrying.

Mwangi, an orphan, was the hope of his grandmother who took care of him after his mother’s demise 16 year ago. They now seek answers on what happened and why.