When the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Machakos nullified the appointment of Mitaboni Location Chief Lea Kalondu Ngutu, many would have expected her to vacate office.

The court had found that Ms Ngutu did not meet the minimum academic qualification for appointment as a Chief after it emerged that she scored a D- in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination instead of the required C (Plain).

But it also found that the matter had been overtaken by events though the Public Service Commission (PSC) had revoked her appointment as chief. Consequently, after the judgment, she remains in office, courtesy of her employer, the Ministry of Interior.

According to senior government officials and court records, the distinction lies between recruitment requirements and career progression for serving National Government Administrative Officers.

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A senior Interior Ministry official, who requested anonymity because he is not authorised to speak publicly and sensitivity of the matter, said the ministry has traditionally considered administrative experience, continuous professional development and mandatory in-service training when evaluating serving officers for promotion.

“The court dealt with the legality of the appointment under the recruitment requirements. Internally, officers undergo continuous administrative training and structured career development within the National Government Administration. Those programmes build competence for serving officers, although they cannot replace statutory entry qualifications where the Scheme of Service expressly requires them,” the official said.

The official said many Assistant Chiefs rise through the ranks after years of administrative service and specialised government training, a factor the ministry considers alongside work experience.

Public service human resource policies also recognise continuous professional development and competency-based training as important considerations in career progression, with ministries required to regularly train and build the capacity of serving officers.

However, the court held that such training cannot override mandatory academic qualifications prescribed in the applicable Scheme of Service.

Under the Revised Scheme of Service for National Government Administrative Officers (2015), the minimum qualifications for appointment to the grade of Chief require a KCSE mean grade of C (Plain), a relevant diploma, and specific personal attributes.

Chiefs and assistant chiefs from Nakuru County attend a sensitization forum on Revised National Registration Guidelines at Rift Valley National Polytechnic in Nakuru on April 9, 2026.

Photo credit: Boniface Mwangi | Nation Media Group

The applicant must be a resident of the specific location they intend to administer, possess good communication and interpersonal skills and be a person of integrity who commands respect in the community.

The court declared Ms Ngutu’s appointment unconstitutional and illegal after finding that she got a D- in KCSE and thus did not satisfy the minimum qualification under the 2015 Revised Scheme of Service for National Government Administrative Officers.

The petition had been filed by Stephen Nzomo Mutua and Anthony Ndonye Mutiso, who challenged the recruitment conducted by the Ministry of Interior and the Public Service Commission (PSC), arguing that it was riddled with irregularities and favouritism.

The case became a test of whether experience and community acceptance could outweigh academic qualifications in public service appointments.

Ms Ngutu defended her appointment, arguing that academic qualifications were not the sole measure of merit under the Constitution. She maintained that her years of service as an Assistant Chief, administrative experience and cultural competence qualified her for promotion.

She further argued that the Constitution does not prescribe rigid academic thresholds for administrative positions.

Appointment in public service

In its submissions, the PSC told the court that Ms Ngutu did not meet the minimum qualifications provided under the 2015 Revised Scheme of Service for National Government Administrative Officers.

The commission disclosed that the shortlisting panel had initially resolved to interview only candidates with a minimum KCSE grade of C (Plain). That decision, however, was ignored when Ms Ngutu was shortlisted and eventually appointed despite holding a D-.

The court ruled that the applicable Scheme of Service still prescribed a minimum KCSE grade of C (Plain) for appointment as Chief and that neither the PSC nor the Ministry could waive the requirement administratively.

“Academic qualifications are core to any appointment in public service,” the court ruled.

“The requirement is also consistent with the provision of the Constitution guiding fair competition and merit as the basis of appointments and promotions.”

The judge further held that Ms Ngutu’s previous service as an Assistant Chief could not justify overlooking the minimum qualification required for the higher office.

“The court finds that the appointment of the fifth respondent, who did not meet the required academic qualifications for the position of Chief, violated Article 232(1)(g) of the Constitution,” the judgment stated.

The ruling reconstructed a recruitment process that began in 2022 but suffered repeated administrative setbacks before a fresh advertisement was issued in July 2024.

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The petitioners argued that the interviews lacked transparency and that Ms Ngutu was selected despite allegedly ranking lowest among the interviewed candidates.

They also contended that the recruitment violated the constitutional principles of integrity, accountability, transparency and fair administrative action.

The court agreed, saying the process undermined public confidence by placing an individual in a sensitive administrative and security office through an irregular recruitment exercise.

Although the court nullified the appointment, it noted that events had overtaken by events leaving Ms Ngutu in office as Chief, Mitaboni Location, Machakos County.

In court, PSC said it had already directed cancellation of Ms Ngutu’s appointment and, following what it described as a merit-based review, recommended another candidate through a letter dated October 22, 2025.

For the petitioners, the judgment reaffirmed that merit in public service begins with compliance with the law.

For the Ministry of Interior, it has exposed the difficult balance between recognising years of service by career administrators and strictly enforcing statutory qualification requirements for appointments.

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