Governor Mwangaza survives impeachment

By Peter Ochieng

Meru governor Kawira Mwangaza has survived the second impeachment motion in a span of a year.

Like the proverbial cat 'which enjoys nine lives,' the first term Meru county governor survived after majority of the 47 elected Senators voted against all the 7 charges levelled against her.

At least 24 Senators needed to vote in favour of the motion, forwarded to the Senate by the Meru County Assembly, in order to oust her from office.

In the first charge of misappropriation of county resources, 19 Senators voted in favour, while 28 voted against.

On nepotism and unethical practices, 5 supported, 42 voted against. On bullying, villification and demeaning other leaders, 3 supported, 44 voted against.

On illegal appointments, 20 Senators voted in favour, while 27 voted against. On the fifth charge of contempt of Court, only 3 Senators supported, while 44 voted against.

On illegally naming a public road after her husband, 4 voted in favour, while 43 voted against.

On the charge of contempt of the Assembly, 10 voted in favour, while 37 voted against.

Senators may have decided to save the former Meru County Women Representative, after being convinced that some Members of Parliament (MPs) in Meru led by Tigania East legislature Mpuri Aburi had pushed MCAs into preparing, debating and approving an impeachment motion against her.

During cross examination, her lawyer Elias Mutuma played a host of video clips depicting the MP using unprintable words against the county boss.

Mwangaza could not hold her tears, when the MP in one of the videos, holding a stick in his hand gave the governor 9 months to get pregnant or he was going to do it with what he was holding.

"He is saying he has given me 9 months to be pregnant and if that is not done, he will do it via what he is holding," said Kawira when called upon to translate what the MP was saying.

The legislature spoke in mother tongue. In another clip, Isaac Mutuma, Mwangaza's deputy was captured trashing the governor’s controversial outreach program dubbed Okolea, where she has been donating cows and mattresses to residents.

Mutuma describes the Okolea program as poverty driven, calling on the locals of Igembe South where he hails from to reject it.

“Honorable Speaker for the last 12 years, I have been doing Okolea and this gave me favour before God. And my deputy who was just a prison askari. God gave us favour because of this program. And out of this program that raised him from an askari to deputy DG of Meru. He is the same person seen on video demeaning the same program that God used to give us favour before men and women."

She becomes the first governor to survive an impeachment trial motion at the Senate plenary. She will continue to serve as governor of Meru.

Former Nairobi governor Mike Sonko and his former Kiambu counterpart Ferdinand Waititu, did not survive the plenary.