Commonwealth job: Matiang'i lobbies for Monica Juma in Zambia

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has delivered the first pitch for the Commonwealth candidature of Dr Monica Juma in Zambia.

This was during his trip to Lusaka Thursday when he met with newly-elected Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema.

The meeting signals the launch of Kenya’s shuttle diplomacy among the 54 member states of the bloc who must all endorse the Defence Cabinet Secretary if at all she is to get the Secretary-General seat.

“Dr Matiang’i who flew to Lusaka Thursday morning conveyed President Kenyatta’s entreaties to Mr Hichilema to support Kenya’s candidate for the post of the Secretary-General for the Commonwealth of Nations,” the Interior ministry said in a statement.

Zambia, like Kenya, belongs to the Commonwealth, which includes the UK and its former colonies.

Besides the UK, notable members of the Commonwealth are Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Nigeria, India, Malaysia, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania among others. They vote under a special meeting known as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting [CHOGM]. 

Decisions including who to select as Secretary-General or whether to extend the term in office for the incumbent are based on consensus, meaning that all members must agree.

If successful, Dr Juma, a career diplomat, will become the 7th Secretary General. She will compete against British diplomat Patricia Scotland whose first term was set to lapse last year, but which was extended twice due to Covid-19. 

She may still be eligible for a second four-year term, although she has not clarified whether she will stand again.

Kenya and Zambia, both former British colonies, also belong to regional blocs such as the African Union and the Common Market for Eastern and Sothern Africa (Comesa). 

In the last vote, African and Caribbean members of the Commonwealth voted as a bloc.