Speaker Justus Kilesi ole Ngussur is accused by Azimio-affiliated ward representatives in the Kajiado County Assembly of favouring their UDA counterparts.
In a press release, 16 MCAs with ties to Azimio accuse the Speaker of being partisan.
According to the statement, the Speaker of the Assembly "blatantly took sides while presiding over debate in the plenary of the Parliament and refused the Azimio coalition members time to voice their opinions and contribute to the debate."
The CEC Member for Education was going to be impeached, according to the MCAs. However, no motion to that effect had been submitted to the Assembly as of February 15, 2023, as claimed by the Speaker.
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Arbitrary Power
The statement continued, "On February 15, the Speaker illegally directed that some sections of the Standing Rules of the Assembly be altered To facilitate the Assembly's ability to remove CEC members, usurping the authority of the appropriate House committee."
They also charge the Speaker with amending the standing orders illegally to impede governmental operations.
They urge the Speaker to correct the contentious standing order amendment process following the Constitution, the County Government Act of 2012, and the Kajiado County Assembly Standing Orders to avoid having to use Section 7(2) of the County Government Amendment Act of 2020 to hold his office accountable to the Kajiado people.
Mr Ngussur, however, says that the accusations made against him were baseless and motivated by politics to tarnish his reputation.
He denied allegations that MCAs supporting Azimio are getting ample time to participate in House floor discussions.
"The accusations are absurd. Any MCA, regardless of political affiliation, is welcome in my office. My office is always available for consultation. I have never presided over a meeting of UDA MCAs to table items before the House, said Mr Ngussur, who noted that the standing order amendment occurred following the County Government Act 2012's legal requirements.
"The disputed modification was finished following an MCA debate—all procedures to which were adhered. The change was discussed and approved by the members. No votes cast for the Speaker, he declared.
Icy Relationships
He promised to uphold his word and carry out his responsibilities following the law.
Due to party politics, the relationship between the UDA and Azimio MCAs has been tense for the past five months.
Twenty-five elected ward representatives, and 16 nominees make up the 41 MCAs in the House. Azimio has 12 elected ward representatives, compared to 13 for UDA.
At the assembly leadership election held in September of last year, Mr Ngussur, affiliated with the UDA, received 26 votes to defeat Mr Koin Rompo, who was running for the Azimio coalition and received 14 votes.
The Kajiado County intends to off-take cattle administration went into disarray in November 2022 when UDA-aligned MCAs refused to approve the Sh100 million additional budget.
The MCAs adopted a supplemental budget of Sh10 billion, which includes their Sh750 million Ward Development Fund, which will provide Sh30 million to each of the 25 wards.
UDA ward representatives left the chambers in protest when the governor addressed the Assembly on Tuesday of last week when the House resumed its regular sessions after a break.
The MCAs, who have promised to remove Education executive Jeremiah Ole Njaro from his position, have accused him of participating in a biased bursary distribution.
