Caleb Kositany is the latest ally of President William Ruto to land a plum State appointment. He has been appointed as the Chair of the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).

KAA is an autonomous body charged with the responsibility of providing and managing all airports in the Kenya.

The appointment is valid for a period of thee years. Kositany unsuccessfully sought the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) ticket in the Uasin Gishu gubernatorial race.

Kositany was one of Ruto’s most vocal supporters on the campaign trail. The former Jubilee Party deputy general was among figures pushed out of the Uhuru Kenyatta-led party over their association with the then Deputy President Ruto.

The move comes a day after several other allies of the President, many of them election losers in 2022, were named as Chief Administrative Secretaries (CASs) in Ruto’s administration. Ruto named 50 CASs, up from 27 in the previous administration.

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It sparked widespread uproar particularly online, with questions on the bloated executive and rising wage bill amid a cost of living crisis.

Chief Administrative Secretaries (CAS) salaries alone will cost taxpayers around Ksh 2.3 billion in salaries alone, for the administration’s first term. Their overall compensation will be considerably higher as every CAS is entitled to a one-off mortgage payment of Ksh 35 million and a Ksh10 million car grant.

CASs also get Ksh 10 million and Ksh 3 million for inpatients and outpatient medical cover respectively.

Taxpayers will also finance the operations of their offices, including two top-of-the-range vehicles, a driver, security personnel, a personal assistant and two secretaries.

Government officials including Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale have, however, defended the appointments stating that the CASs will support the implementation of the government’s agenda.

“On CAS appointments, Ministries have cross cutting issues that need to be addressed. We bring in new energy to revitalize existing capacity and strength,” he stated in an interview with Gikuyu stations.

Duale, on the other hand, stated: “The auxiliary roles of the Chief Administrative Secretaries (CAS) are important in driving the Ministries’ goals and the Government’s Development Agenda.”

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