Interviewing panel divided down the middle. A brother of the internal security minister who did not declare interest during interviews was also picked. PM Raila Odinga disowns the list and says he was not consulted. Did Acting Head of Civil Service Francis Kimemia mislead Parliament or Raila is not being truthful?

Amina Masoud during interviews to select members of the National Police Service Commission in Nairobi February 15, 2012. President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga picked Ms Masoud to head the NPSC March 8, 2012.

Amina Masoud has been picked to head the nine-member National Police Service Commission.

President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga also submitted the names of five NPSC members to Parliament for vetting.

They are: Esther Chui- Colombini, Ronald L Musengi, James A Atema, Dr Major Muiu Shadrack Mutia and Ms Mary Auma Owuor.

The three other members of the Commission will be the Inspector General of Police and the two Deputy Inspector- Generals who are yet to be appointed.

Parliament is required to consider the names within 21 days and approve or reject them. The House will request for new nominees in the event of the latter.

Speaker Kenneth Marende directed Thursday that the names be forwarded to the parliamentary committee on Administration and National Security for consideration together with accompanying CVs.

Ms Masoud was among a list of three names that was forwarded to President Kibaki and Mr Odinga by the panel that was mandated to set up the team that will spearhead police reforms in the country.

The other two were Johnstone Kavuludi, a former civil servant, and Murshid Mohamed.

Controversy surrounded the nomination process with a member of the panel denouncing the list sent to the President by the chairman of the panel Festus Litiku.

Lydia Gachoya, representing the National Gender and Equality Commission on the interviewing panel, said Ms Masoud\'s name should not have been on the the list.

She said the three had not been arrived at by consensus and claimed there was a deliberate scheme to appoint Mr Mohamed.

She claimed that in Ms Masoud\'s place should have been the name of Ms Jean Kamau. In order of merit according to Mrs Gachoya, the list should have had Mr Kavuludi, Mr Mohamed and Ms Kamau.

A list of eight other names was also sent to the principals for the position of five members of the commission which shall vet, hire, fire, discipline and transfer police officers.

According to Mrs Gachoya, the panel was split down the middle after members voted on the nominees and that the chairperson was forced to support one side to break the deadlock. (Daily Nation)