Kenyans have been having this discussion online since President Uhuru nominated Amb. Amina Mohamed for the position of Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC).
The position is currently held by Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma of South Africa, but her term is coming to an end.
The nomination process was opened afresh after the AU Heads of state Summit in Kigali in July failed to elect the successor of Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. There were 3 contenders for the position, but none of them obtained the required two-thirds majority after seven rounds of voting.
Ms Mohamed will battle it out with former Ugandan vice president Specioza Wandira Kazibwe, Equatorial Guinea Foreign Minister Agapito Mba Mokuy and his Botswanian counterpart Pelonomi Venson Moitoi.
Amina Mohamed has been rated by many as the best performing cabinet secretary in Kenya. The government took over while the President and Deputy President had ongoing cases at the ICC, and there was talk that Kenya would be sidelined by the international community.
However, what we’ve seen in the past 4 years is unprecedented visits by top world leaders, and Nairobi hosting major global events.
Some people believe that Amb. Amina’s skills are better utilized at home than at the AU, whose job no one seems to really understand.
Instead of letting her skills get wasted in Ethiopia as she tries to reason with old men who are still clinging on to power, people think she should remain as Kenya’s foreign affairs cs and continue doing tangible work. Who knows, maybe in a few years the UN top position may open up.
What do you think?
