David Ndii, who serves as the Chairperson of President William Ruto’s Council of Economic Advisors, has made it clear that the Attorney General is not responsible for signing government agreements.
This came after former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi gave an interview sharing his past experience while serving as Attorney General.
Ndii responded to Muturi’s claims in a post on X, where he explained that the role of the Attorney General is only to give legal advice and approve whether the government can go ahead with a deal.
Ndii emphasized that actual signing is done by Cabinet Secretaries from the relevant ministries, not the Attorney General.Muturi had claimed that at one point, he was asked to sign documents related to a Sh129 billion deal while he was in transit in Dubai.
He refused, stating that the contract would have broken the law because such huge funds are required to go through the National Treasury instead of being handled directly by a ministry.
His comments pointed to a possible push to bypass legal financial procedures. According to Muturi, this incident was one of the reasons his relationship with President Ruto started falling apart.
He said that after this refusal, things were never the same.Muturi was recently removed from the Cabinet in a reshuffle.
Some reports had labeled him as incompetent, but in his interview, he stood firm and said he did his job well. He pointed out that the records speak for themselves and that anyone can go and check.
He added that when he joined the State Law Office, it was part of Ruto’s manifesto to make the office independent, and he achieved that goal with help from parliament.
Ruto himself has publicly criticized Muturi’s performance. During an Iftar dinner with Muslim leaders at State House, Ruto blamed delays in implementing the Muslim Endowment Fund, also known as Waqf, on Muturi.
Ruto said the fund had taken too long to come to life and even called Muturi incompetent. He claimed that the problem was with the Attorney General at the time, and now that a new person had taken over the office, he expected things to move forward.
Ndii’s comments seem aimed at protecting the current system from being blamed for past issues. By saying that the AG does not sign agreements, he shifts the responsibility to the Cabinet Secretaries. However, Muturi’s claims raise questions about the behind-the-scenes pressure and legal concerns involved in big-money deals in government.
The tension between legal advice, executive power, and financial procedures is once again at the center of controversy in Ruto’s administration.
