Senators Call for Fresh Look at Governor Removal Laws
Senators are advocating for a reassessment of the protocols and criteria for impeaching governors and their deputies to prevent the misuse of the process for political gain.
Referring to the 2020 dismissals of former governors Mike Sonko (Nairobi) and Ferdinand Waititu (Kiambu), the legislators emphasized the severe repercussions of such impeachments, underscoring the importance of ensuring the process is fair.
Senators’ renewed efforts reflect the Council of Governors (CoG) requests to revise the laws regarding impeachment to prevent misuse of the process by untrustworthy MCAs.
CoG Chair Anne Waiguru has been advocating for changes to the County Governments Act, 2012, aiming to modify the part that outlines the process and requirements for the dismissal of governors and their deputies, to make it more challenging to remove them from office.
The Kirinyaga governor, who was saved by the Senate in 2020, stated that the process should align with the procedure for recalling a Member of Parliament.
She claimed that the initiative is intended to provide governors and their deputies with enough time to establish their administration to effectively deliver services.
“As governors, we are extremely concerned by the impeachments. When you compare the process of removal of a governor to the recall of an MP, you find that there is a very huge difference,” she said.
Senators now argue that there is a necessity to put an end to random impeachments that are employed for political convenience.
Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot contended that impeachments are now being treated as political maneuvers despite their significant legal and constitutional repercussions, stating, “We can’t simply permit this to happen.”
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Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei said: “Even Sonko, the former popular governor of Nairobi, the consequence of his impeachment is so painful. You have been out of the office for more than 10 years. If he was to run for governor even in Mombasa in 2022, he would have won. That is the pain of being impeached.”
He went on: “These are the things we want to cure so that by the time you are being impeached, you have committed a serious offense and sin against man, God, and the constitution of Kenya.”
Kitui Governor Enoch Wambua mentioned that some governors have faced impeachment due to false accusations.
“We have seen governors go through anguish and pain of impeachment for reasons other than the provisions of the constitution on the removal of a governor. There are those out of office for extra-constitutional reasons,” Mr. Wambua said.
To date, he said, “I believe there were no grounds for the removal of Governor Sonko from office. He was removed for other reasons and not for the breach of the constitution. What has happened is that now a very young leader, robust, a man of the people, cannot hold public office because he was impeached for extra-constitutional reasons.”
Mr. Wambua suggested that the Senate Committee on Devolution should address the issue by presenting a bill for discussion. This would enable members to establish appropriate criteria for impeaching governors.
Kiambu Senator Karungo Wa Thang’wa stated that Mr. Waititu, similar to Mr. Sonko, was improperly impeached.
“If we allowed Sonko to go to court and gave ourselves timelines, probably he would be safe by today. Even Governor Waititu, the people of Kiambu know very well there was no requisite number at the county assembly to kick him out,” said Mr Thang’wa.
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Mr. Waititu, according to his statement, will not be able to assume any public office due to political reasons.
“MCAs should give us video evidence, Hansard reports, and the number of votes during an impeachment process at the county assembly, and if we have an MCA who says he never voted, we listen to them first,” said the senator.
Mr. Thang’wa stated that an impeached deputy governor should not be replaced within 14 days, allowing all legal procedures to be fully completed first.
“We must have laws that allow the ousted deputy governor or that governor to go to court and we should not say our decision is final. We need to comb through this County Government Act so that we can help these counties. I dare say in the county governments of 2013 and 2017-2022, it was the national government trying to kill devolution,” the lawmaker added.
Marsabit Senator Mohamed Chute emphasized the importance of reviewing and revising the laws related to impeachment to make the required changes.
“The way Governor Sonko was removed from office, there should be a way of asking him to bring a petition to this house to be looked at because the way he was removed is unconstitutional and very irregular. This matter needs to go to the courts for them to say yes, this person was removed regularly before they are finally sent home,” he said.
Senators Call for Fresh Look at Governor Removal Laws