Tribunal accords besieged MCAs temporary reprieve

Bomet Assembly Speaker Geoffrey Kipngetich (right). The Speaker declared the nine expelled URP MCAs strangers in the House, a move that sparked protests on Tuesday afternoon. [PHOTO: FILE/standard]

Bomet, Kenya: The United Republican Party (URP) disciplinary committee has suffered a blow after its decision to expel nine nominated MCAs was temporarily overturned.

The Political Parties Dispute Tribunal allowed the MCAs to stay in office until the matter is determined.

The MCAs were on Tuesday afternoon ejected from the assembly chambers after the Speaker declared them "strangers" because their nomination had been withdrawn by the party that had sponsored them to the House.

Speaker Geoffrey Kipngetich declared them strangers when he read to the House a communique from the party citing their expulsion from URP, the party that nominated them.

Mr Kipngetich said he had received official communication from the Registrar of Political Parties and URP on their expulsion and so they were strangers in the House.

Appearing before the three-member tribunal, Hellen Taplelei, Aurelia Chepkurui, Beatrice Chebomui, Hellen Chepkurui, Josephine Rotich, Bency Too, Rose Boiyon, Nancy Chepkurui and Patrick Chepkwony sought orders to bar URP from expelling them.

political rivalry

The MCAs are reportedly being punished by URP for supporting Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto, who is locked in a supremacy tussle with the deputy President.

Tribunal members Chacha Odera, James Atema and Jessie Mutura, in an open court directed the MCAs to continue serving until the dispute is resolved.

"Pending the hearing and determination of the application, order of stay do and is hereby granted staying the URP's decision to expel the MCAs," reads part of the order, signed by Mr Odera.

The case will be heard on May 19. Last week, the party leadership cracked the whip on the MCAs, who were accused of not toeing the party line and failing to impeach Governor Ruto; a perceived critic of the DP's leadership style.

The MCAs had been summoned to appear before the party's working committee on April 7 to show cause why they should not be disciplined, but they snubbed the call, resulting in the formation of a disciplinary committee that finally recommended their dismissal.

 

Governor Ruto has scoffed the attempts by URP to discipline the MCAs and himself and dared the party to expel him.

The speaker's communication had sparked protests from some of the elected MCAs, who accused him of illegally declaring the members strangers, yet the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) had not issued a gazette notice to that effect.

The bitter exchange of words between the members and the speaker saw Chemagel Ward Representative David Rotich thrown out of the House and banned for four consecutive sittings.