CoA to hear stay application in Majority leadership contest on Wednesday » Capital News
NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 20 – The Court of Appeal will hear the stay application against the court order that overturned National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula’s designation of Kenya Kwanza as the House Majority on Wednesday, February 26.
A three-judge bench, constituted by the President of the Court of Appeal, will hear the application.
“I have been directed to inform you that this application (stay) will be disposed of by way of a GO-TO-MEETING VIDEO LINK connected to the Court and Counsel/Party on record. All submissions should be limited to three (3) pages,” Court of Appeal Registrar told litigants.
The Court urged the applicants and respondents to comply with the directions regarding the service and filing of submissions before the hearing date.
This follows a challenge by Parliament and four MPs from the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA), led by Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, against the High Court ruling.
The lawmakers argue that the ruling has created confusion over which party holds the majority and minority positions in the National Assembly.
Ichung’wah, Owen Baya, Sylvanus Osoro, Naomi Jillo Wako, and Parliament have asked the Court of Appeal to issue orders suspending the lower court’s decision or the execution of the entire judgment delivered on February 7.
They argue that without stay orders, irreversible consequences could disrupt House business.
The applicants claim the court failed to address the critical issue of determining which party qualifies as the majority and which as the minority, despite ruling that the Speaker’s decision was invalid.
“This oversight calls for a further determination of the issue. Additionally, the court failed to recognize the implications of its decision while waiting to resolve which party is the majority and which holds the minority status,” the petition reads.
Contested decision
On February 7, the High Court declared the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Alliance as the Majority Party in the National Assembly.
In its ruling, the three-judge bench—comprising Justices John Chigiti, Lawrence Mugambi, and Jairus Ngaah—argued that Speaker Moses Wetangula violated the constitution by declaring Kenya Kwanza the Majority Party on October 6, 2022.
The court criticized Wetangula for assigning Kenya Kwanza the 14 members from other parties without justification, stating that this action breached the Constitution.
Wetangula had ruled that Kenya Kwanza had 179 members in the House, compared to Azimio La Umoja’s 157.
However, the ruling coalition gained the majority after 14 members from the opposition 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 Party, it follows that the Speaker violated the Constitution,” the court ruled.
Speaker Wetangula has since reinstated Kenya Kwanza as the House Majority citing autonomy of Parliament to determine its matters.