President Uhuru Kenyatta on Tuesday pleaded with parliament to quickly approve the appointment of Immaculate Kassait as Data Commissioner so as to enable issuance of Huduma Namba to Kenyans.
Both President Uhuru Kenyatta and CS Fred Matiang'i indicated that the pending confirmation of the former election operations boss as the factor holding back the process.
The president in recognizing the parliamentary leadership of both houses asked Speakers Ken Lusaka and Justine Muturi to ensure the nomination is approved.
President Kenyatta nominated Mrs Kassait, who has vast experience in election operations to take up the Data Commissioner's role.
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Until her nomination, Kassait was serving as the Director for Voter Education, Partnership and Communication at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
"The issuance of the cards will be rolled out as soon as the national assembly completed the process of appointment of the Data Commissioner as directed by the High Court," stated CS Matiang'i.
The president, the first lady and ten other Kenyans were issued with sample Huduma Cards with the CS insisting the process will be completed in accordance with the directives by the high court.
On his part, the President specifically asked the speaker to ensure the process is expedited, asking the Majority Leader Amos Kimunya to ensure the nomination of Kassait sails through parliament.
Mrs Kassait will be responsible for the enforcement of the Data Protection Act with duties such as exercising oversight on data processing operations, promoting self-regulation among data controllers, promoting international cooperation in data protection related issues, and conducting research on data processing development.
Last week, Muturi informed the house of the nomination of Mrs Kassait by the President, directed the House Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation to expeditiously proceed to commence the approval hearings.
