Meru deserves better from devolution dream

Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza has, for the fifth time, been impeached by the county assembly. The assembly passed the resolution in defiance of several attempts to compromise MCAs through financial inducements, court battles as well as divide and rule tactics.

The next step is for the county assembly to forward the impeachment articles to the national Senate for a third impeachment motion. This is the elephant in the room. The governor has previously faced the Senate on two previous impeachment proceedings.

However, the Senate has converted all the proceedings into a callous theatre of the absurd by awarding the governor with blank cheques for impunity and arrogance.

The question is; who between the Senate and the County Assembly is constitutionally vested with the role of impeachment of governors? Article 176 of the Constitution vests the county assembly with the duty to oversight the county executive organs among the roles of representation, legislation, and vetting of appointments.

It is important to note that impeachment is an oversight function. Article 96 enumerates functions of the Senate as representing interests of the counties, law making, allocation of resources to the counties and more importantly; considering and determining the motion for removal of the president and deputy president.

Judged in the light of the two articles, the role of impeachment of governors is constitutionally an exclusive province of county assemblies. Article 96 confers the Senate power to consider and determine impeachment motion for removal of president and deputy president.

If the drafters of the constitution intended the senate to play such role, there’s nothing which would have prevented them from including the same....removal of the president, the deputy president, and the “governors”. Unfortunately, the Senate gerrymandered itself into the process through the County Government Act.

Now, there has been credible information that senators are given money by impeached governors to save their political lives.

During Governor Kawira’s last Senate proceedings, it was questionable how the senators ignored the real issues and created diversionary boogeyman in the form of gender.

Even more pathetic were the personalised attacks and insults directed at the lawyers for the county assembly in a setup where they could not defend themselves. The senators were seemingly highly motivated. It is alleged that, in the following weeks and months, some senators became permanent features in the corridors of Meru county offices.
The way forward is for the county assemblies to go to court and seek reversal of the unconstitutional usurpation of power by the Senate. In my view, aspects of section 33 of the County Governments Act which purports to grant the Senate powers in the process of impeaching governors through the back door, contravenes the Constitution and should be declared null and void.

The reason for this is simple, impeachment is a political trial by peers that, to some extent, restricts the enjoyment of the right to a fair trial before an independent tribunal. Hence, it can only be legitimate where it is anchored in law.

Nevertheless, this time round, the Senate should listen to the impassioned cry from the Meru people. The house must rise above personal interests just like the MCAs have done and stand with Meru people.

For devolution to make sense, MCAs must be recognised rightly as vital players in county affairs and not as moot actors whose actions and resolutions are dismissed and defeated by a wave of the hand by people who play no direct role in their counties.

The people are waiting and keenly watching. Meru deserves a new beginning. So much time and resources have been wasted in feeding the governor’s ego.

-The writer is a professor at Multimedia University of Kenya