William Ruto Nominates US-named Drug Trafficker Hassan Joho As Cabinet Secretary For Mining

Kenya’s embattled President, William Ruto, has nominated a U.S.-named suspected drug trafficker and former Mombasa Governor, Ali Hassan Joho, as Cabinet Secretary for Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs in his latest batch of Cabinet nominees.

The President made the appointment at the State House, Nairobi, on Wednesday, nearly a week after unveiling the first batch of his Cabinet nominees.

I commend the leadership of diverse organisations for their encouraging response to my outreach to consult on forming a broad-based government,” Ruto said in his address in the State House Nairobi.

Joho is one of the two deputy leaders for former President Raila Odinga’s party, the opposition Orange Democratic Party (ODM).

Among other nominees of the opposition party are former Kakamega Governor, Wycliffe Oparanya as the new National Treasury to the Ministry of Co-operatives and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Development, Opiyo Wandayi for Energy and Petroleum.

Alongside Joho as Cabinet Secretary is ODM’s John Mbadi. These nominations emerged from Ruto’s list amidst ongoing countrywide protests that have disrupted economic activities for a month now.

The list, however, reportedly came to light following a deal brokered in what the young protesters deemed as “co-opting the opposition with jobs and perks” while the status quo remains the same.

The Finance Bill protests that led to this protest have since recorded the killings of about 50 youths, creating the biggest crisis since Ruto took power from Odinga in the 2022 election.

Despite the youth’s demand for good governance, Ruto has nominated Joho, whose alleged past involvement in illicit drug trade remains unresolved.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

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