Calls to reform the nomination system have reached the Senate after a petition proposed a one-term limit for nominated MCAs, saying the current practice has turned affirmative action seats into a preserve for a few politically connected individuals.
The petition, presented before the Senate by Speaker Amason Kingi and sponsored by Nakuru resident Laban Omusundi, asks senators to enact legislation restricting all nominated Members of County Assembly to a single term. It proposes that the limit apply without exceptions or transitional loopholes.
According to the petition, the Constitution established the party-list nomination system to expand representation for marginalised groups and ensure more Kenyans have an opportunity to take part in leadership. It argues that repeated nominations go against that objective by allowing the same individuals to occupy the positions term after term.
Omusundi says the continued recycling of nominated MCAs has shifted the purpose of affirmative action, turning positions meant to promote inclusion into political rewards.
The petition states that repeated nominations amount to “a deliberate subversion of the Constitution” by converting nomination slots into “a closed system of political reward and patronage”.
It further argues that the practice has denied thousands of qualified Kenyans, particularly women, youth and persons with disabilities, an opportunity to serve in county assemblies through the nomination system.
According to the petition, repeated nominations have had four major effects. It says they have turned public office into personal property, locked out deserving candidates, defeated the purpose of affirmative action and weakened public confidence in democratic institutions.
The petition also blames the absence of a clear legal term limit for nominated MCAs, saying the gap has allowed political parties to continue recycling nominees.
“The absence of a statutory term limit for nominated MCAs has created a dangerous legislative vacuum, being exploited to capture and privatise constitutional opportunities,” the petition says.
It compares nominated positions with elective offices, noting that the President, governors and other elected leaders are subject to constitutional term limits aimed at preventing the concentration of power.
The petition argues that it is “constitutionally inconsistent” for positions created to promote inclusion to become what it describes as lifetime entitlements through repeated nominations.
It also warns that unless Parliament acts, nomination slots risk remaining under the control of a small political class.
“Unless urgently addressed, nomination slots risk being captured permanently by a small, self-serving political class, thereby transforming a progressive constitutional safeguard into a tool of exclusion and injustice,” the petition states.
The proposed reforms are anchored on Articles 56 and 90 of the Constitution.
Article 56 requires the State to establish affirmative action programmes that give minorities and marginalised groups greater opportunities in political representation.
Article 90 provides for party-list nominations to promote inclusive representation in elective bodies.
The petitioners argue that the two constitutional provisions were intended to broaden access to leadership and create opportunities for more Kenyans, rather than allow a small group of politically connected individuals to benefit repeatedly from the nomination system.