NAIROBI, Kenya – President William Ruto has appointed Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) Chairperson Claris Awuor Ogangah as the new Vice Chairperson of the Panel of Experts on Compensation of Victims of Demonstrations and Public Protests.
The appointment, announced through Gazette Notice No. 15945 on Tuesday, takes effect on November 4, 2025, and revokes the earlier appointment of Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambo, who resigned last month citing legal setbacks that had stalled the panel’s work.
Ogangah, who was sworn in as KNCHR Chairperson earlier this year, will now join the 18-member panel tasked with recommending a reparations framework for victims of police brutality and violence during anti-government protests.
Odhiambo resigned on October 6, saying persistent court challenges and legal hurdles had paralysed the panel’s operations. She warned that the 120-day mandate was likely to expire before victims could be heard.
“The proposed mandate of the Panel presented an opportunity to overhaul the existing legal and institutional framework on victim reparations, which has proven inadequate in addressing public concerns over police overreach and protestor victimisation,” Odhiambo said in her resignation letter to the Head of Public Service.
She added that her oath of office as LSK President required her to “safeguard the resilience of Kenya’s rule of law institutions.”
The High Court has, however, suspended the panel’s operations pending the outcome of a legal challenge.
Justice Kizito Magare of the Kerugoya High Court certified the petition as urgent in September, issuing conservatory orders halting the implementation of the President’s directive that established the panel through Gazette Notice No. 12002 of August 25, 2025.
The court later extended the suspension ahead of the inter partes hearing scheduled for October 21, effectively freezing the panel’s work for now.
The panel was formed to develop a mechanism for compensating victims of demonstrations and public protests dating back to 2017, including those affected by the deadly 2024–2025 anti-government protests in which more than 120 people were killed and hundreds injured.
Ogangah’s appointment is seen as a move to restore momentum to the stalled reparations process amid growing public demand for accountability over police excesses during protests.
