Activist wants citizen-driven mechanism for removal of President, Governors

Nakuru Activist Laban Omusundi in an Interview with The Standard on February 24, 2025. [Daniel Chege, Standard] Nakuru-based activist Laban Omusundi has petitioned the Senate to enact a law to give Kenyans powers to remove the President, Governors and their deputies from office. In the petition dated September 1, Omusundi says the current mechanism, which solely depends on Parliament and County Assemblies may be compromised. The activist wants the senate to ensure the legislation has clear grounds for removal (recall) and allows verified petitions initiated by registered voters from a specified percentage of counties for the president and wards for the governor. He wants the senate to acknowledge and affirm that the citizen's sovereign power extends to direct recall for national and county executives in cases of gross misconduct, abuse of office, or violation of the Constitution. "The senate should safeguard and prevent abuse of the recall process, such as thresholds of signatures and time restrictions," he deposes. ALSO READ: Activist complains to EPRA over 'unfair' tokens charges Further, he wants the senate to ensure alignment of the proposed law with the sovereignty of the people, national values and constitutional supremacy. Omusundi says that although the constitution envisages a system of checks and balances to prevent abuse of power, in reality, political compromise has weakened legislative oversight. He notes with concern that the current mechanisms for removal are solely dependent on legislative bodies but argues that the same had failed. "In many instances, the National Assembly, Senate, and County Assemblies have been compromised or unduly influenced by the executives, thereby frustrating accountability," deposes Omusundi. He insists that the reality on the ground undermines the principle of sovereignty of the people, accountability, and the national values under Article 10 of the Constitution. He regrets the fact that there is no express mechanism for citizen-initiated recall of the four executives, especially when the legislative bodies fail to act in circumstances of gross misconduct, violation of the Constitution or abuse of office. "There is a constitutional gap where the sovereign power of the people is not adequately operationalised in circumstances where legislative bodies are compromised," he submits. Further, Omusundi expounds that no efforts have been made to address the concern, and unless the senate acts, the same would never be addressed. He assures the senate that direct citizen recall would restore the sovereignty of the people, reinforce accountability, and operationalise participatory democracy. "The principle of people's sovereignty is incomplete without a mechanism for citizens to directly recall their highest elected leaders when other arms of government fail," he affirms. He calls for the senate to treat his petition as urgent and pleads with the house to act in good faith in order to prevent impunity, protect constitutionalism, and entrench democratic accountability. The petition was received in the Senate on Monday and would be reviewed for further action. This comes a few days after the Senate saved Kericho Governor Erick Mutai from impeachment, despite Kericho MCAs voting for the same. The Senate overturned the MCAs' decisions and acquitted Mutai of all the charges levelled against him by the assembly. The senators, in a majority vote done electronically, voted in favour of a motion seeking to terminate the hearing of the impeachment, effectively letting the governor off the hook. dchege@standardmedia.co.ke

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