Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala has revoked the appointment of Pauline Njoroge as a member of the Board of Tourism Regulatory Authority.
The minister’s revocation of Njoroge’s appointment comes a day after she was elevated to the Tourism body for a three-year term.
Njoroge has lost the job following a previous Facebook post in which she suggested the Nairobi National Park should be closed and its land allocated to more beneficial economic activities because, according to her, the park wasn’t bringing any significant funds to the Kenyan economy.
“It does not make sense that in a congested city like Nairobi, we can afford to have acres and acres of land in the name of a park when the commercial capital is literally bursting with people,” Njoroge said in a previous Facebook post.
It is these words that have come back to haunt her, making her lose a job that she was barely one day old in.
In a statement dated Saturday, August 8, CS Balala said he had revoked Njoroge’s appointment to the Tourism body, and replaced her with journalist Najma Ismail.
“The Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife, Najib Balala, has revoked with immediate effect the appointment of Pauline Njoroge as a Board member of the Tourism Regulatory Authority,” reads the statement.
“I am revoking Pauline Njoroge’s appointment as a Board member of the Tourism Regulatory Authority because we have just seen what she had tweeted in the past -- that Nairobi National Park was useless. We do not want to be associated with such people and such thinking,” the CS is quoted as saying in the Tourism ministry press release.
“The integrity of Nairobi National Park is very important and the Government is committed to save Nairobi National Park, and any other protected area, which is the habitat for our national heritage: wildlife.
“We regret we did not know what she had said in the past. We want to take this opportunity to thank Kenyans on social media for highlighting what we had missed during our background check on her.
“Pauline Njoroge’s appointment to the Tourism Regulatory Authority Board is revoked with immediate effect, and her position taken over by Najma Ismail.”
Following her Friday, August 7 appointment to the Tourism body via Gazette Notice Number 5462, Pauline Njoroge took to Facebook to thank President Uhuru Kenyatta and CS Balala for the consideration.
“I thank the President and CS for Tourism and Wildlife Najib Balala for giving me yet another opportunity to serve. It is indeed an honour and I endeavour to work diligently, to add value to the sector, to listen, to learn and to apply those lessons. I hope to give my very best as I execute my duties as a board member of the Tourism Regulatory Authority," she said on her official Facebook page on Friday.
“I am so overwhelmed by all the messages, calls and social media posts. The love and support has been humbling and I appreciate each and every one of you.
“We have walked this journey together on this wall, and in one way or another you have all contributed to what I have become. Your continued support is part of what keeps me going and you are therefore important to me and all your opinions matter, even when we may disagree on various positions from time to time.
"We shall continue conversing and any concern that has been raised or will be raised (yes, even that one), we shall address as the days go by.”
