Kisii county assembly gets interim Speaker

Kisii County Assembly Members have elected Bokimonge Ward Representative Amos Onderi acting Speaker.

This comes as the House prepares to debate the Building Bridges Initiative Bill. Sources indicate that it would have been difficult to pass the Bill with the then leadership led by ousted Speaker David Kombo.

The House has been sharply divided in the last few months with MCAs unsuccessfully impeaching Speaker Kombo.

“Following the stalemate that existed before in the County Assembly, the full House membership held fruitful deliberations and fronted a common proposal to have Mr Amos Onderi, MCA Bokimonge,” read a statement from the Assembly.

“Mr Onderi will temporarily chair the House proceedings pending finalisation of matters already under discussion,” said the statement.

The acting Speaker will work closely with the ousted one.

Kisii Governor James Ongwae, Senator Prof Sam Ongeri and Women Rep Janet Ong’era had a sitting with the MCAs before settling for Mr Onderi.

They welcomed the move and urged MCAs to work together and remain united.

For more than four months, the MCAs engaged in running battles with police before they were forced into recess.

Chaos rocked the Kisii County Assembly grounds several times with police using teargas to disperse the MCAs who had vowed to paralyse House business until Kombo steps aside.

At one time, a motion to impeach Mr Kombo ended prematurely before tallying and vote counting was done after chaos broke out.

The acting Speaker and Boochi Borabu MCA Samuel Onuko adjourned the House and deferred the motion of impeachment.

The motion of impeachment was moved by Bogiakumu MCA Ishmael Matundura, accusing the Speaker of abuse of office, corruption and gross misconduct, and failing to procure group life insurance and group accident cover for members.

MCAs discovered the two policies were not paid for when the Kiamokama Ward MCA Ken Mainya died and his family was not compensated as per the policy. The money for the policies was factored in the budget.

Members of the assembly then proceeded to the regional Ethics and Anti-Corruption offices to register their frustration and asked the anti-graft agency to intervene.

Three vehicles belonging to MCAs were destroyed by hired goons who attacked them at the assembly grounds.