Franklin Bett

Last updated

Franklin Bett
Franklin Bett.png
Born (1953-03-23) 23 March 1953 (age 70)
Nationality Kenyan
Other namesFranklin Kipn'getich Bett, Chepkooit
OccupationPolitician

Franklin Kipn'getich Bett alias (Chepkooit) (born 23 March 1953) is a Kenyan politician. He is currently serving as the chairman of the Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) after President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed him to the position. He belongs to the Jubilee Alliance Party and was elected to represent the Bureti Constituency in the National Assembly of Kenya in the Kenyan parliamentary election, 2007. [1]

Contents

Early life and education

Franklin Kipng’etich Bett, also known as Chepkooit to his supporters, was born on 23 March 1953 in Kiptiriri Village, Cheborge, in the larger Kericho District. He was enrolled in Cheborge Primary School in 1960 and later moved to Korongoi Primary School in 1963 where he graduated top of his class in 1968.

He was selected to join Tenwek High School in 1969, then a mission school under the auspices of the World Gospel Missionaries. Some of Bett's notable co-alumni of Tenwek High School include Mark Kipkemoi Bor, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation, his close friend and predecessor at the Ministry of Roads Kipkalya Kones, Dr. Bishop Rono, Ambassador John Koech, Josephat Nanok and many other leaders in business, politics and academia.

Bett graduated from Tenwek High School in 1972 with Division 1, the highest grade possible in the then Kenya Certificates of Examination (O-level).

In 1973, he proceeded to Shimo la Tewa High School in Mombasa for his Kenya Advanced Certificate of Education (KACE) where he attained three principals in history, geography, economics and a subsidiary in general paper upon graduation from the school in 1974.

After graduation, Bett went back home where he founded Tebesonik Secondary School and served briefly as its first head teacher before joining the University of Nairobi to pursue an undergraduate degree in commerce (accounting). He graduated in 1979.

Public Service

After graduating, Bett joined the civil service where he built a career that culminated in his appointment as an Assistant Secretary at the Treasury in 1987. His seniors at the time included Simeon Nyachae, a one-time finance minister, Chief Secretary and businessman; and Jeremiah Kiereini who too was once a Chief Secretary, Head of the Civil Service and Secretary to the Cabinet.

After his resignation, he worked briefly with the [[Federation of Kenya Employers before the then president Daniel arap Moi recalled him back to government and assigned him the Supplies Branch of the Ministry of Roads and Public Works. Soon after, Moi once again tapped him for the position of Deputy State House Comptroller. His main duties were speech and report writing.

He served in the position until 1996 when he was promoted to the position of State House Comptroller upon the retirement of Abraham Kiptanui, for whom he was a deputy. He held this role for two years until, in 1998, he was demoted to a Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Environmental Conservation.

Political career

In early 2002, Bett was approached by Raila Odinga to join him in a new political party - the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and he acquiesced.

When LDP joined hands with the Mwai Kibaki-led NAK to form NARC, Bett was entrusted with the responsibility of coordinating its activities in the South Rift. In spite of the fact that South Rift had been a KANU bastion for the four decades since independence, Bett's team was able to claw back substantial ground for NARC. As the historic 2002 election votes trickled in, his input was manifest in the numerous civic seats, impressive performance by parliamentary candidates on its ticket and thousands of votes for its presidential candidate Kibaki who eventually was declared the winner. Unlike many leaders from the region, Bett's judgment carried the day. The NARC government nominated him as a member of parliament in 2003 and was subsequently elected to chair the Parliamentary Select Committee on Agriculture, Land and Natural Resources. With him at the helm, the committee sponsored many bills and motions with the Forest Act of 2005 being its most remarkable. The committee is remembered for vehemently opposing the introduction of GMOs in the country.

The year 2005 saw Bett and Henry Kosgey leading the people of Rift Valley to join the rest of the country in rejecting a what they termed a 'watered-down' draft constitution in that year's referendum. In 2007, Bett contested the Buret Constituency parliamentary seat on an ODM ticket and won. He garnered 43,000 votes against his nearest competitor Paul Sang of KANU who managed got 7,000 votes.

From his contributions on the floor of the House, he was able to nudge the government into putting up a pineapple processing plant in Roret and the Tiriitab-Moita-based Bureti Technical Institute, both projects are still underway. Other projects are Kapkatet Stadium that is being modernised alongside the Sotik-Cheborge-Roret-Sigowet and Litein-Kibugat roads that are being upgraded with bitumen.

Following the demise of Kipkalya Kones, he was appointed to replace him as Minister for Roads in February 2009. His stewardship at the Ministry of Roads has seen a rapid expansion of roads infrastructure in all parts of the country. The Thika Superhighway became a reality under his charge.

Personal life

Bett is fond of travelling for business and leisure. He has visited over 70 countries and has close business and political contacts in Australia, United States and United Kingdom. He has five daughters and four sons.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenya African National Union</span> Political party in Kenya

The Kenya African National Union (KANU) is a Kenyan political party that ruled for nearly 40 years after Kenya's independence from British colonial rule in 1963 until its electoral loss in 2002. It was known as Kenya African Union (KAU) from 1944 but due to pressure from the colonial government, KAU changed its name to Kenya African Study Union (KASU) mainly because all political parties were banned in 1939 following the start of the Second World War. In 1946 KASU rebranded itself into KAU following the resignation of Harry Thuku as president due to internal differences between the moderates who wanted peaceful negotiations and the militants who wanted to use force, the latter forming the Aanake a forty, which later became the Mau Mau. His post was then occupied by James Gichuru, who stepped down for Jomo Kenyatta in 1947 as president of KAU. The KAU was banned by the colonial government from 1952 to 1960. It was re-established by James Gichuru in 1960 and renamed KANU on 14 May 1960 after a merger with Tom Mboya's Kenya Independence Movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Rainbow Coalition</span> Political party in Kenya

The National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) is a political party in Kenya. As an alliance, it was in power from 2002 and 2005 when it collapsed due to disagreements between members over a constitutional referendum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mwai Kibaki</span> President of Kenya from 2002 to 2013

Emilio Mwai Kibaki was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kalonzo Musyoka</span> 10th Vice President of Kenya

Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka is a Kenyan politician who was the tenth Vice-President of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. Musyoka served in the government under the late President Daniel arap Moi as the Secretary of Kenya African National Union party (1980-1988), Assistant Minister for Works (1986-1988), Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly (1988-1992), Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 until 1998, Minister of Education (1998-2001); and subsequently, under the late President Mwai Kibaki, he was Minister of Foreign Affairs again from 2003 to 2004, then Minister of the Environment from 2004 to 2005. He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2007 presidential election, after which he was appointed vice-president by Kibaki in January 2008.

The Liberal Democratic Party was a political party in Kenya.

The Forum for the Restoration of Democracy–Asili (FORD–Asili) is a political party in Kenya. Asili means 'original' in Swahili. FORD-Asili has its origins in the original Forum for the Restoration of Democracy. In August 1992, the original FORD split into two factions. The Odinga-Wamalwa faction remained in the original Nairobi party headquarters at Agip House on Haile Selassie Avenue whilst the Matiba-Shikuku faction moved to Muthithi House on Muthithi Road in Westlands. Thus for a period prior to registration as independent parties, the two factions were known as FORD-Agip and FORD-Muthithi. FORD-Agip was registered as FORD-Kenya whilst FORD-Muthithi was registered as FORD-Asili. Both parties went on to field competitive presidential candidates in the December 1992 general elections. FORD-Asili's candidate Kenneth Matiba polled second to KANU's Daniel Toroitich arap Moi in 1992 and won 31 parliamentary seats, dominating Murang'a District in Central Province and garnering a credible portion of the votes in Eastern and Western Provinces. By 1997, Kenneth Matiba and Martin Shikuku disagreed on a number of matters resulting in Matiba's departure from the party, his destruction of his voter's card and refusal to stand in the 1997 Presidential Elections. Martin Shikuku therefore won the party's presidential nomination and went on to win only 0.6% of the Presidential Vote, with the party winning 1 National Assembly seat. In the 2002 election, Ford-Asili won 2 out of 212 elected seats and did not field a presidential candidate, choosing to support the successful NARC alliance candidate Mwai Kibaki. In 2007, Ford-Asili supported Mwai Kibaki again as presidential candidate, this time under the Party of National Unity banner and won a single parliamentary seat in its own right. In the same election, the party's original presidential candidate Kenneth Matiba re-registered as a voter and stood under the Saba Saba-Asili banner. Matiba came in 7th with only 0.081% of the vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moody Awori</span> 9th Vice President of Kenya

Moody Arthur Awori, known as "Uncle Moody", is a former Kenyan politician who served as the ninth Vice President of Kenya from 25 September 2003 to 9 January 2008. He is also the author of Riding on a Tiger, an autobiography about his life in politics.

Kenneth Stanley Njindo Matiba was a Kenyan politician and an activist for democracy. He came in at second place in the 1992 presidential election. In November 2007, he announced that he would stand as a presidential candidate in the December 2007 election. Matiba placed seventh, with 8,046 votes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Kijana Wamalwa</span> 8th Vice President of Kenya

Michael Christopher Kijana Wamalwa was a renowned Kenyan politician who at the time of his death was serving as the eighth Vice-President of Kenya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raila Odinga</span> Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013

Raila Amolo Odinga is a Kenyan politician who served as the prime minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. He served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Langata Constituency from 1992 to 2013 and has been the Leader of Opposition in Kenya since 2013. He is the leader of Azimio la Umoja–One Kenya Coalition Party.

Raphael Tuju, EGH is a Kenyan politician. In 2002—after a career as a journalist, TV producer, and real estate investor—Tuju was elected to the parliament from where he continued to mould his political career to date.

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) is a centre-left political party in Kenya. It is the successor of a grassroots people's movement which was formed during the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum campaign. This movement separated in August 2007 into the Orange Democratic Movement Party of Kenya and the Wiper Democratic Movement – Kenya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Saitoti</span> 6th Vice President of Kenya

George Musengi Saitoti, E.G.H. was a Kenyan politician, businessman and American- and British-trained economist, mathematician and development policy thinker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Michuki</span> Kenyan politician and businessman

John Njoroge Michuki was a Kenyan politician and businessman. He was born at Muguru, village, Iyego Location, Kangema Division in Murang’a District. He was educated in Kenya and abroad. Michuki emerged as one of the prominent and long-serving civil servants and politicians as well as a businessman in Kenya. Michuki served Kenya in various capacities, including Permanent Secretary in the Finance Ministry, Chairman of the Kenya Commercial Bank, Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. He was serving his 4th five-year term as a Member of Parliament for Kangema Constituency. Michuki had a reputation as a "ruthless" and efficient manager, and was widely acknowledged as among the best performing ministers in President Kibaki's Government. He was serving as the Minister for Environment and National Resources at the time of his death.

Simeon Nyachae was a Kenyan politician, government minister, and businessman from Kisii County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Kenyan general election</span> 2002 General Elections in Kenya

General elections were held in Kenya on 27 December 2002. Voters elected the President, and members of the National Assembly. They coincided with the 2002 Kenyan local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007 Kenyan general election</span>

General elections were held in Kenya on 27 December 2007. Voters elected the President, and members of the National Assembly. They coincided with the 2007 Kenyan local elections.

The 9th Parliament of the Republic of Kenya was opened by elected President Mwai Kibaki on February 18, 2003. It was the first time that the formerly-dominant Kenya African National Union of Daniel arap Moi was in the minority. The triumphant NARC, which dominated in the general elections of 2002 was in the majority, led by Kibaki.

Kipkalya Kiprono Kones was a Kenyan politician who served as a minister during the 1990s and was briefly Minister of Roads in 2008. He was a member of the National Assembly of Kenya from 1988 to 2008.

David Musila is a Kenyan politician. He belongs to the Wiper Democratic Movement and was elected to represent Mwingi South Constituency in the National Assembly of Kenya in the Kenyan parliamentary election of 1997. In 2013 he was elected as the first senator representing Kitui County.

References

  1. Members Of The 10th Parliament Archived 16 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Parliament of Kenya. Accessed 19 June 2008.
PROFILE