Nominee for Kenya's Representative to UN Post in New York Forced to Apologize for Listing Uhuru as Referee

Ambassador Martin Kimani, the nominee for Kenya’s permanent representative to the UN in New York, was forced to apologize to MPs for naming President Kenyatta as a referee in his résumé.

Kimani appeared before the National Assembly's Defense and Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday for vetting following his nomination by Kenyatta.

But some members of the committee took offense at Kimani’s decision to list Uhuru as one of his referees, accusing him of attempting to ‘intimidate’ them.

“The president is the appointing authority. Why did you have to list him as your referee? Are you trying to intimidate us by saying Uhuru is your referee?” Mandera North MP Bashir Abdullahi asked Kimani.

In response, Amb. Kimani admitted to having erred in including the president’s name in his CV and apologized to members of the committee.

“Referees are those people who know your character. This is what I was thinking when I included him, but now thinking that my referee is actually the appointing authority, I realize I made a mistake. I would be happy to add one more name,” he said.

He told the House team that he is worth around Sh58 million which he has accumulated in his 22-year diplomatic career.

Amb. Kimani, who was a co-secretary in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) taskforce, is among those who were recently nominated for various ambassadorial positions.

The position of Kenya’s permanent representative to the United Nations in NY fell vacant following the appointment of Amb. Macharia Kamau as the Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary. Lazarus Amayo, the new Kenyan ambassador to the US, held the position in an acting capacity.