Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Kiture Kindiki will be
sworn in on Friday as the new Deputy President.
President William Ruto nominated Kindiki as Deputy
President nominee on October 18.
This followed the impeachment of former DP Rigathi
Gachagua at the Senate Assembly.
Born in 1972, the soft-spoken father of three is described
as a public servant and Professor of Law with a stellar track record and
extensive experience in public administration, governance, public policy,
lawmaking, legal advisory and constitutional affairs at municipal and
international levels.
Kindiki holds a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree from Moi
University, a Postgraduate Diploma in Law from the Kenya School of Law, a
Master of Laws (LL.M) degree, and a Doctorate (Ph.D.) in International Law from
the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
Before joining politics, he taught law and held various
administrative positions at Moi University School of Law and the University of
Nairobi School of Law.
He began his career as an Assistant Lecturer in Law at
Moi University immediately upon graduating with an undergraduate degree in law.
He then joined the University of Nairobi as a Lecturer
after graduating with a PhD in International Law where he quickly rose to the
Head of Department of Public Law at the young age of 33.
He would later on be named Associate Dean at the age of
35.
Kindiki was then promoted to the post of Associate
Professor of Law at Kenyatta University.
He has authored 35 publications including books, book
chapters and articles in local and international peer-reviewed journals.
He is also an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya.
Kindiki is a member of the Academic Council on the United
Nations System (ACUNS), the International Association for the Study on Forced
Migration (IASFM), the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), the East
African Law Society (EALS), and the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
Before his appointment to Cabinet, Kindiki served as the
Senator for Tharaka Nithi County, from 2013 to 2022.
Between 2013 and 2017, he doubled up as Senate Majority
Leader and from 2017, he doubled up as Senate Deputy Speaker.
In his role as Senate Majority Leader, he spearheaded the
legislative agenda of the Majority Party in the Senate and served as thea
leader of the Majority Party.
As Senate Deputy Speaker, Kindiki deputized the Senate
Speaker in presiding over sittings and debates in the House of Senate and
enforcing rules of procedure and parliamentary processes.
He also conducted oversight roles governance of counties
and participated in lawmaking on matters affecting counties.
In the two years he has been Interior and National
Administration CS, Kindiki has led and overseen the achievement of various
milestones and reforms in the ministry, including the Police Equipment
Modernization, finalization of a strategic framework to commence implementation
of Police Reforms, and abolishment of the previous vetting processes for
issuance of National Identity cards.
Kindiki has also overseen the recognition of minority
groups and stateless communities by ensuring they receive Kenyan citizenship,
operationalization the Public Benefit Organizations Act, enhancing the fight
against banditry and general insecurity around the country, as well as
developing a legislative proposal to amend the National Government Coordination
Act of 2013 to officially recognize village elders in each unit.
He has also spearheaded the enrolment of 13,120 inmates
into formal education programs, among others.