Justice Bahati Mwamuye of the High Court has quashed the appointment of former Gender Cabinet Secretary Aisha Jumwa as chairperson of the Kenya Roads Board. The ruling delivered on Wednesday May 20 found that her appointment by President William Ruto violated the law and went against public interest.
In his ruling the judge declared the appointment unconstitutional and unlawful from the very beginning. He cited violations of Section 7 of the Kenya Roads Board Act as well as Articles 10 47 and 232 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010. The court directed that a fresh appointment be made in strict compliance with both the KRB Act and the Constitution.
The case was brought before the court through Petition E043 of 2025 filed by activist Francis Awino. He challenged the appointment on grounds that it violated multiple legal provisions and was not conducted in a transparent or lawful manner.
Ruto appointed Jumwa as non-executive chairperson of the Kenya Roads Board in January 2025. The decision immediately attracted controversy with the Institution of Engineers of Kenya among the first to raise objections. The engineers argued that Jumwa lacked the professional qualifications required under the Kenya Roads Board Act particularly in civil structural or transport engineering.
The engineers body also took issue with the process followed during the appointment arguing it contravened guidelines set out in the First Schedule of the Kenya Roads Board Act. Despite the uproar Jumwa was officially inaugurated on January 29 2025 and was received at her new office by Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir alongside other senior government officials.
While the court nullified the appointment it stopped short of overturning all decisions made during Jumwa’s time in office. Justice Mwamuye explained that quashing every decision without fully understanding their scope and impact on the public would be unreasonable.
The ruling lands as another legal setback for Ruto’s administration which has faced growing scrutiny over the quality and legality of key government appointments since taking office in 2022.