Court Temporarily Saves Kawira Mwangaza From Impending Impeachment
The High Court of Meru has temporarily halted the impeachment proceedings against Meru County Governor Kawira Mwangaza, which were scheduled to take place at the Meru County Assembly on Thursday, July 25.
On Wednesday, Justice L. Kassan issued the verdict in response to a petition filed by Governor Mwangaza challenging the bid to remove her from office.
Meru Assembly deputy majority leader tables motion to impeach Governor Kawira Mwangaza pic.twitter.com/uUeWQaR0jT
— Nation Africa (@NationAfrica) July 17, 2024
In his decision, Justice Kassan emphasized the constitutional right to a fair hearing to ensure that no rights are violated during such important political processes.
“An impeachment is a process that directly engages a person to be impeached and so like a normal process of dismissal, the right to fair hearing must always be upheld,” Justice Kassan stated.
The court emphasized the importance of maintaining the status quo pending the final decision on the petition to ensure that the judicial process is not rushed.
This allows enough time for a thorough analysis of the evidence presented.
“The right to a fair hearing is for all the parties and judicial officers who require time to analyze the evidence without extreme pressure,” Justice Kassan remarked
Several critical issues are central to the case, including allegations of a violation of the right to a fair hearing, consideration of sub judice matters, claims of double jeopardy, allegations of forgery of signatures by Members of the County Assembly (MCAs), and the inclusion of interested parties in the proceedings.
The High Court at Meru has temporarily halted the impeachment proceedings against Meru Governor Hon. Kawira Mwangaza. This decision comes after the Governor filed a constitutional petition challenging the process initiated by the County Assembly of Meru pic.twitter.com/65LC1XbjlP
— The County Focus (@TheCFNewspaper) July 24, 2024
The court acknowledged that granting interim orders could have unintended consequences.
On the one hand, the judge acknowledged that suspending the impeachment process temporarily disrupts the County Assembly’s proceedings.
On the other hand, denying the interim orders may prejudice the Governor, who has raised serious constitutional concerns.
“The High Court is clothed with the authority to oversee faithfulness and submission to the constitution by anybody, any juristic person in order to avert chaos and anarchy,” the judge emphasized.
Justice Kassan scheduled the final ruling on the matter for Monday, July 29, 2024.
“The upshot of the above is that the impeachment process is halted Pending my ruling and since this is a matter of public interest, the rulings will be delivered on Monday the 29 day of July 2024,” reads the ruling.
The decision will be communicated to all parties involved via email. Until then, the ongoing impeachment process against Governor Mwangaza, which will be the fourth attempt to remove her, is on hold.
Court Temporarily Saves Kawira Mwangaza From Impending Impeachment
