Barely a day after President William Ruto nominated Dr. Duncan Oburu Ojwang as the Chairperson of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), a petition has been filed challenging the nomination.
President Ruto, on Tuesday, August 5, 2025, officially nominated Dr. Ojwang to the KNCHR Chair position and forwarded his name to the National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) for vetting.
However, Katiba Institute and the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) have filed a petition at the Milimani High Court in Nairobi to challenge the nomination, with Article 250(11) of the Constitution of Kenya being at the heart of the petition.
In a joint statement on Wednesday, the two organizations said that Article 250(11) expressly prohibits the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of any independent commission from being of the same gender, arguing that the current KNCHR Vice-Chairperson, Dr. Raymond Nyeris, is male.
The petitioners argue that this nomination violates the Constitution and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights Act, reiterating the gender diversity requirement.
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Inside the petition by Katiba Institute and KHRC
They accuse the KNCHR Selection Panel, the President, and the National Assembly of failing to uphold national values, particularly gender equity, rule of law, integrity, and inclusivity.
“The petition follows the announcement made on 5 August 2025 by the National Assembly via its X (formerly Twitter) handle that it had received the President’s nomination of Dr. Ojwang and would proceed to vetting,” read part of the statement.
“Despite this, the selection panel invited, shortlisted and recommended another male, Dr. Ojwang, for the position, and the President subsequently nominated him.”
Filed under Articles 3(1), 10, 27, 73, 232, and 250(11) of the Constitution, the petition alleges that the process discriminated against qualified women candidates, unjustifiably limited women’s rights to equality, and disrespected the principles of public service and leadership integrity.
The petition also invokes international instruments such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Maputo Protocol, which Kenya is bound to uphold.
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Ruto’s nomination of Dr. Ojwang as the KNCHR Chair challenged
It further seeks various declarations and orders, including the nullification of Dr. Ojwang’s nomination and a directive compelling strict compliance with the constitutional gender requirements for appointments to independent commissions.
The petitioners, at the same time, want the court to declare that any actions taken based on the unconstitutional nomination are invalid.
“The case marks a significant test of Kenya’s constitutional commitment to gender equity in public leadership and challenges the continued practice of ignoring binding gender representation provisions,” added KHRC. The case will be mentioned on 17 September 2025.
Following Ojwang’s nomination on Tuesday, National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula referred the Curriculum Vitae, the report of the KNCHR Selection Panel, and other testimonials of the nominee to JLAC for vetting.
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