According to diplomatic protocol, it is within a country’s right to refuse a certain foreign ambassador, but it is highly unusual to do so.However in such cases , the rejection of an ambassador might have to do with his past record which the host country cannot associate itself with.
However it is notable to say that governments rarely give negative replies to other countries’ requests to accredit an appointed ambassador. Rather, they simply do not respond to the request for an agreement, thus signaling that they disapprove and hope the host country will withdraw the nomination.
But in what could turn out to be a stinging indictment of the vetting process of State officers, the fate of eight recently appointed Kenyan diplomats is in limbo because host countries have kept their accreditation in abeyance.
Six months after being vetted by Parliament and consequently appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta, the seven; Ndegwa Muhoro (Malaysia), Hassan Wario (Austria), Benjamin Langat (Namibia), Johnson Kimani Ondieki (Turkey), Richard Ekai (Russia), Sarah Serem (China) and Paddy Ahenda (Qatar) have yet to report to their foreign duty stations.
A source attributed their plight to their previous assignments in government and questions on personal issues. During diplomatic posting, the sending state (Kenya) has to inform receiving state of change of ambassador which is followed by providing details known as the Agreem`e to the state.
It is, however, up to the receiving state to accredit them or out rightly reject them — either with or without documented reasons.
For Muhoro, his former position as Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), might have worked against his appointment as ambassador to Malaysia.
According to a source that sought anonymity, the Malaysian government has blocked his appointment citing his alleged ruined record during his tenure at Mazingira House, the DCI headquarters.
During his vetting process by the National Assembly, Muhoro whose first appointment to Israel as an envoy did not materialise, was confronted with allegations of spate of extra-judicial killings and unsolved high-profile murders during his tenure.
It is on that premise that sources revealed to People Daily, the Malaysian government under the new tough Prime Minister Mahathir Bin Mohamad blocked the former sleuth’s ambassadorial job.
While appearing before the National Assembly’s Defence and Foreign Relations Committee, Muhoro faced intense scrutiny over his record as the country’s top criminal investigator. In a memorandum to Parliament, outspoken lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi asked the committee not to approve Muhoro’s nomination, citing alleged threats to his (Ahmednasir’s) life.