This is my plan in the Energy Ministry- Wandayi

Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary nominee Opiyo Wandayi has outlined how he intends to fulfill his role in government, despite his previous position as Leader of the Minority in the Azimio One Kenya Alliance.

During his appearance before the Committee on Appointments on Saturday, Wandayi expressed confidence in his capability to manage the Ministry, drawing on his academic, professional, and parliamentary experience as proof of his readiness for the role.

“Apart from being the leader of the minority, I have also been a member of the Public Investment Committee, Energy and Commercial,” he said.

Addressing the challenge of electrifying areas that currently lack electricity, Wandayi emphasised his commitment to accelerating the development of transmission lines with the necessary capacity to deliver power to consumers.

He also pledged to collaborate closely with the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation (REREC) and Kenya Power to expedite the modernisation of infrastructure.

“We have situations where we are not able to evacuate power from the generators to the end user because of lack of transmission capacity. We shall work closely with REREC and Kenya Power to fast-track the modernisation of the infrastructure. In Western Kenya, I will ensure that the Turkwel -Ortum- Kitale line is completed and commissioned in the shortest time possible,” he said.

Opiyo Wandayi: We have situations where we are not able to evacuate power from the generators to the end user because of lack of transmission capacity. We shall work closely with agencies to fast-track the modernisation of the infrastructure pic.twitter.com/nFuS9AgF2y

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Wandayi also addressed the issue of cartels, vowing to take a firm stance against those hindering progress, particularly those causing delays in power generation.

“I have noticed a problem when it comes to the point of generation of power. We are blessed as a country to have geothermal resources that could help our energy be the cheapest. However, Independent Power Producers (IPPs) with licenses are not utilising the sites and have kept them for purposes of speculations therefore starving KenGen... We shall deal with this menace,” he said.

Furthermore, Wandayi promised to address customer dissatisfaction with Kenya Power, which has been criticised for its poor response to customer grievances.

“The matter of customer satisfaction is known to all of us, in terms of services by KPLC. What I think KPLC requires is an urgent business process reengineering to look at the totality of the architecture of the management of Kenya Power processes and functions,” he said.

If approved, Wandayi also plans to increase the uptake of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) from 40 per cent to 100 per cent by 2028 to prevent incidents like the Embakasi gas inferno.

“We will work closely with all players to make it possible for all Kenyans to access clean energy,” he said.

Vice Chair Gladys Shollei questioned how Wandayi’s past opposition to government proposals would influence his performance as a Cabinet Secretary.

In his response, Wandayi responded by clarifying that his role in the National Assembly, including his position as Leader of the Minority, was to hold the Executive accountable impartially.

“When I was sitting in the House, I was simply playing my role. And it must be understood clearly that under Articles 94, 95 and 96 of the Constitution, Parliament, regardless of which side you are sitting on, has a collective duty to oversight the Executive, to legislate and also to represent the electorate. It only follows that I happened to have come from the Party to which the President and his Deputy did not belong,” he said.