Suspended Youth Affairs Principal Secretary Lilian Wanja Muthoni Mbogo Omollo, 44, has become a household name over the past few days. However, many know little about the PS at the epicentre of the Ksh9 billion NYS scandal.
After over 10 years of service with international organisations, Wanja made a debut in the public sector barely two and a half years ago, joining a ministry that was bedevilled by the Ksh790 million scam then at the NYS. She’s really a person of interest in Kenya’s corridors of justice.
Her desire to empower the youth through creation of sustainable economic programmes and belief that youth and public service were at the heart of development are what perhaps convinced the vetting committee, which commended her saying: “…excellent communication and interpersonal skills as exhibited through her eloquence and articulation of issues.”
Even after taking over from the embattled Peter Mangiti who was sacked, Wanja still remained unknown to many until the new scandal surfaced. In fact it’s from the scandal that the public came to know her official names as Lilian Wanja Muthoni Mbogo Omollo.
Wanja, the mother of three was born in Makengi area in Runyenjes constituency, Embu County, but later the family relocated to Rukira area in the same county.
She married one Omollo but later fell out with him and married Dick Oruko Oneko, son of nationalist Ramogi Achieng’ Oneko in 2017.
Lilian holds a Master of Education degree in Entrepreneurship from the University of Illinois, USA as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Education from Kenyatta University.
At the time of her appointment as PS, she was the Chief Executive Officer for NEPAD Kenya Secretariat. Before this, she worked at UNDP – Kenya where she managed the Public Sector Reform Programme.
Wanja played a key role in the mobilisation and coordination of donor resources through UNDP for support to the taskforce on devolution in 2011. She also served as a core team member in the establishment of the Brand Kenya Board, a state corporation under the ministry of Information and Communication.
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Whether Wanja’s decision to bring her experience in the public was a curse in disguise to her already decorated career is a matter that only the corridors of justice will determine but for now, she and part of her team remain guests of the state as the hunt for the lost billions intensifies.
