Migori MCAs disrupt sitting in violent fracas, one hurt

One MCA was injured yesterday after a scuffle broke out in the Migori County Assembly.

Nominated MCA Stella Ombonya was injured on her left leg and was rushed to hospital.

The fracas broke out following some of the MCAs' attempts to disrupt a special sitting to discuss a petition seeking to remove members of the county public service board.

The MCAs had refused to join Deputy Speaker Mathews Chacha and six MCAs who had already started the session.

Immediately after noticing that the session was ongoing, they stormed the assembly, demanding that the deputy speaker adjourn the sitting for lack of quorum.

North Kadem MCA Olima Obonyo, who led his colleagues in storming the assembly after unsuccessfully trying to tell the speaker that there was no quorum, said no sitting would take place until their grievances were addressed.

The MCAs are demanding bursaries, which they say they were promised by the county executive, packages for the members' welfare, including mortgages and salaries.

"In the recent past, we got a communication from the executive that we were supposed to get bursaries and the forms were supposed to be collected between January 6 and 9," Mr Obonyo said.

The MCAs claimed they did not have money and means of transport and that some of them had to use boda bodas to attend the special sitting.

However, Mr Chacha proceeded with the short session where a committee was named to look into the petition before it is presented before the plenary.

The MCAs whose noise bore no fruit marched out in anger. Immediately after the session was adjourned, they clashed with Majority Leader Ken Ouma, who was pushed to the ground.

Ouma fell on two female MCAs, including Ms Ombonya.

Moreover, the furious MCAs started collecting signatures for removal of the deputy speaker and majority leader, whom they accused of going against the assembly's standing orders.

"It is assumed that the speaker is blind for him not to see that there was no quorum," Obonyo said.

The MCAs said they were trying to raise a point of order and bring to the deputy speaker's attention that there was no way such a serious and weighty business could be transacted with only six members.

"He should have upheld the rule of law. We are collecting signatures to remove the deputy speaker for that gross violation of our standing orders," said Obonyo.

Central Kanyamkago MCA Eunice Odii said their grievances as MCAs had been underrated.

"We are all members of the county assembly and we should perform our duties without intimidation," said Ms Odii.

In a Gazette notice dated January 11, County Assembly Speaker Charles Owino indicated that there would also be communication on the county attorney nominee during the special sitting.

According to the notice, the assembly would consider a petition of the removal of the county's public service board members.

"Pursuant to the provisions of the standing order 27(3) of the Migori County Assembly Standing orders, it is notified for the information of the MCAs and the general public that a special sitting of the county assembly shall be held on January 16 at the county assembly as from 9:30am," the notice read.

The Migori MCAs chaos comes just a week after their colleagues in Kericho engaged in fist fights over County Assembly leadership wrangles.