Wetang’ula dismisses court ruling on dual role, to appeal verdict » Capital News
NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 8-National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula has dismissed the High Court’s ruling on his dual role as Speaker and Party Leader of FORD Kenya party, saying his party would appeal the High Court’s decision.
The National Assembly Speaker has termed the decision as mere “ordinary comments” in law that are non-binding and have no practical effect.
Through his legal advisor, Benson Milimo, Wetang’ula clarified that the court did not order him to relinquish either office.
“I want to assure the nation and the Ford Kenya fraternity that there is absolutely no cause for alarm. What the court did was make comments—what the law terms as ‘obiter dictum’—which are non-binding and have no consequential effect,” Milimo said.
He further emphasized that at no point did the court rule that Wetang’ula should vacate his position as Speaker of the National Assembly or cease being the Party Leader of Ford Kenya party.
“This means that Dr. Moses Masika Wetang’ula remains the Party Leader of Ford Kenya as well as Speaker of the National Assembly. The Simba Party remains intact, stable, and ready to participate in the 2027 General Election,” he added.
Court Ruling
However, the ruling delivered by Justices John Chigiti, Lawrence Mugambi, and Jairus Ngaah was unequivocal.
The judges found Wetang’ula in blatant violation of the Constitution, stating that he should have stepped down as Party Leader upon assuming the Speakership.
“The dual role is unlawful and unconstitutional,” the court ruled. “Once he became Speaker of the National Assembly, he ceased to be the leader of Ford Kenya party.”
The ruling dealt a blow to Wetang’ula’s controversial October 6, 2022, decision in which he declared Kenya Kwanza as the Majority Party in Parliament, insisting it had 179 members compared to Azimio la Umoja’s 157.
On Friday, the High Court declared the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Alliance coalition as the Majority Party in the National Assembly.
It argued that Wetangula had violated the constitution in issuing the ruling on October 6 2022 on the floor of the house which was deemed ‘Solomonic’.
He had ruled that Kenya Kwanza has 179 members in the House against Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition party’s 157.
However, the ruling coalition emerged as the majority following a post-coalition agreement as 14 members from the opposition coalition and independent candidates shifted to Azimio.
“By assigning Kenya Kwanza the 14 members of the parties without any reason and declaring Kenya Kwanza as the majority leader, it follows that the Speaker violated the Constitution,” the court ruled.
In the judgment, the bench emphasized that the Speaker is supposed to act as a neutral arbiter.
According to the three-judge bench, the Speaker’s decisions should be independent and devoid of any political influence, emphasizing impartiality and adherence to constitutional principles.
“The speaker can’t fault the registrar of political parties. She couldn’t provide what she did not have…The speaker ought to have exhibited the agreement which were alleged to have been presented during the debate without the post-election coalition agreements he had not basis to this regard” court ruled