Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi has abruptly revoked the appointment of Seth Panyako as a member of the Local Authorities Provident Fund (LAPF) Board, ending the trade unionist’s tenure with the stroke of a pen.

The revocation, contained in a special Gazette Notice dated January 23, 2026, marks the latest escalation in the government’s quiet but ruthless cleanup of state corporations. Panyako, the fiery Secretary General of the Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN), has been a vocal critic of the administration’s healthcare policies, a stance that many insiders believe made his position at the LAPF untenable.

The Mechanics of a Sack

CS Mbadi exercised his powers under Section 5(1)(d) of the Local Authorities Provident Fund Act, read together with Section 51(1) of the Interpretation and General Provisions Act. Legalese aside, the message is brutal in its simplicity: Panyako is out, effective immediately. He had been appointed to the board in 2023, tasked with overseeing the retirement billions of county workers.

Sources at the Treasury intimate that the fallout was inevitable. "You cannot sit at the table of government while overturning it from the outside," a senior official whispered. Panyako’s recent agitation for nurse strikes and his blistering attacks on the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) rollout have reportedly irked the powers that be.

• The Union Factor: Panyako is not just a board member; he represents a powerful constituency. His removal is likely to be interpreted as a declaration of war against the union movement.
• The Board Shake-up: This is not an isolated incident. CS Mbadi has been systematically reconstituting boards under his docket, replacing political appointees with technocrats aligned with the "Bottom-Up" economic agenda.
• The Silence: Notably, Panyako has yet to issue a formal statement, a rare quietus for a man known for his press conferences.

A History of Friction

Seth Panyako is no stranger to controversy. From leading nationwide nurses' strikes to clashing with governors over collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), he has built a career on disruption. His appointment to the LAPF board was seen as an olive branch—a way to bring a firebrand into the fold. That experiment has now failed.

The LAPF, which manages over Ksh 50 billion in assets, is a critical cog in the devolution machine. It ensures that the thousands of workers who keep our counties running have a safety net. With Panyako out, the question becomes: who takes his place? And will they have the spine to protect the workers' interests, or will they merely be a rubber stamp for the executive?

As the dust settles, one thing is certain: in the high-stakes poker game of Kenyan politics, John Mbadi just called Panyako’s bluff.