National Assembly dismisses plan to oust Speaker Wetang'ula
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula.
It has emerged that the plot to oust Moses Wetang’ula as Speaker of the National Assembly is already in motion, with the House announcing that it had dismissed the first attempt to censure him.
In a letter dated February 7, 2025, Clerk of the National Assembly Samuel Njoroge said the Grassroot Oversight Initiative moved to initiate a motion against Mr Wetang’ula. However, the plan was thwarted by the National Assembly on grounds of procedural limitations under parliamentary rules.
Mr Njoroge informed the petitioners that parliamentary rules do not allow the House to discuss the Speaker’s conduct unless a substantive motion is introduced by an MP.
“We have perused the Constitution, the Petition to Parliament (Procedure) Act, 2012, and the National Assembly Standing Orders and note that Standing Order 87(1) provides that the conduct of the Speaker can only be discussed through a substantive motion with at least three days’ notice,” the letter stated.
While dismissing the Grassroot Initiative’s motion, the Clerk stressed that the National Assembly's procedural barriers shield the Speaker from direct censure by the public. This effectively means that external groups cannot oust the Speaker without the backing of legislators.
The revelation comes at a time when more than 35 angry Azimio MPs last week indicated that there's no love lost between their coalition and Mr Wetang’ula, saying they will initiate the process to remove the Speaker either through impeachment or court process.
MPs Junet Mohamed (Suna East), Robert Mbui (Kathiani) and Millie Odhiambo (Suba North) accused the Speaker of failing to abide by the court ruling that nullified his October 6, 2022, communication that declared President William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza coalition the majority side in the House.
After the court decision, Mr Wetang’ula ruled that Kenya Kwanza has 165 MPs and is therefore the majority side, and Azimio 154 MPs in the 349-member House.