- The Senate has rejected the request of the Nyamira County Assembly to impeach Governor Amos Nyaribo after upholding the initial objection raised by his defense
- The Senate agreed that the required two-thirds threshold was not met, as only 23 out of 35 MCAs supported the motion instead of the minimum 24
- Speaker Amason Kingi announced the decision after 38 senators voted in support of the objection, thus ending the impeachment process
The Senate has rejected the request of members of the Nyamira County Assembly to impeach Governor Amos Nyaribo for the third time.
Source: Twitter
The upper house on Wednesday, December 3, accepted the initial objection raised by the governor’s defense, which claimed that his removal from office by the County Assembly was not orderly.
Why Amos Nyaribo opposed his removal from power
Nyaribo’s side said that the threshold for his removal from power was not reached, as only 19 members of parliament were present to approve the motion despite indications that 23 MCAs sued the governor.
Senator Aaron Cheruiyot, the leader of the majority, presented the argument on whether the objection raised by Nyaribo is valid to stop the proceedings in the Senate.
The point of debate was whether the two-thirds threshold was met when the County Assembly passed the impeachment, with the County Assembly saying that four MCAs were represented by their colleagues who voted earlier.
The governor’s defense said that 23 votes could not approve the impeachment while only 19 ward representatives challenged the motion in the chamber of parliament.
Senators discussed the matter before the vote led by Speaker Amason Kingi.
Those who opposed the objection claimed that there were precedents set in the removal of former governors Mike Sonko (Nairobi) and Ferdinand Waititu (Kiambu), where the two-thirds rule was not an important factor in the respective parliaments.
How senators saved Governor Nyaribo
Kingi put the matter to a vote later in the evening after parliament took a break, and most of the senators agreed that the initial objection was valid. They claimed that although there may be challenges of governance and bad governance in the county, the impeachment laws should be followed.
Thirty-eight senators voted in favor of the objection, with four against. Nyamira Senator Okong’o Omogeni was among the senators who rejected the objection.
Source: Twitter
Therefore, the speaker decided that the impeachment will not continue until the trial phase, whether in the general committee or the special committee.
“If the motion is approved, the hearing of the proposal for the removal of Hon. Amos Kimwomi Nyaribo, the Governor of Nyamira County, has been suspended here,” the speaker said.
Earlier, the County Assembly, through its legal team, claimed that the two-thirds threshold was met as the four MCAs who were supporting the impeachment motion but were not present were voted through their peers.
Lawyer Katwa Kigen, representing the parliament, said that “voting by proxy” it was not a mistake, implying that those who did so had the approval of their colleagues who were not present in parliament.
The defenders of the motion claimed that the law does not allow such a clause “voting by proxy”.
Nyaribo was removed from power on November 25. The motion was sponsored by Majority Leader Julious Matwere.
Why was Amos Nyaribo deposed?
Matwere, who represents Bonyamatuta ward, accused the governor of serious constitutional violations, misconduct, and misuse of public funds as the basis for his removal.
Nyaribo allegedly planned to transfer KSh 32 million to associates through irregular salaries and is said to have received KSh 5.6 million in dubious salary arrears.
He also faced allegations of illegal appointments that bypassed congressional scrutiny, interference with the County Public Service Board through irregular audits, demotions, and attempts to suspend his secretary.
After the vote, Speaker Thaddeus Nyabaro announced that he would inform the speaker of the Senate about the parliament’s resolution.
Ordinarily, Nyaribo’s case would have been charged in a plenary session of the Senate or a special committee. He survived other impeachment attempts in 2023 and 2024.
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Source: TUKO.co.ke
