ODM Slams Meru MCAs For Impeaching Governor Mwangaza
Homa Bay Town MP Peter Opondo Kaluma criticized Meru County Assembly Members on Monday for impeaching embattled Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza, even as her impeachment hearing began in the Senate.
In a statement, Kaluma claimed that the County Assembly of Meru had become a national embarrassment and called for its dissolution.
It is actually gender discrimination and condescending for a dude like MP Kaluma to defend Kawira Mwangaza – just because she is a female gender.
— SKEPTICAN🇰🇪🇹🇿🇺🇬🇳🇬🇪🇹🇷🇺 (@EstonKwach) August 19, 2024
The Meru MCA who tabled the impeachment motion against Kawira is actually a lady.
Anyone can steal, both men and women. pic.twitter.com/L2W4RHDLeS
This is Mwangaza’s third appearance on the stand to defend herself.
“The County of Meru has become a national shame and should be dissolved! Who elected these sick MCAs who can’t understand the meaning of ‘gross’ in impeachment motions!” Kaluma retorted.
The lawmaker went on to say that it was primitive of the County Assembly to fight Kawira because she is a woman when other parts of the world support women’s leadership, and he called for the case to be dismissed.
In 2022, the lawmaker expressed his support for the Governor by calling out those who attempted to remove him.
“What gross misconduct has Governor Kawira Mwangaza committed to deserve this fight by men barely 3 months after the election? Men must accept that women too can be Governors! The Senate should dismiss this nonsense,” he tweeted in December 2022
The hearing on Mwangaza’s impeachment began with Senate Clerk Jeremiah Nyegenye reading the charges for her proposed removal from office.
She was charged with gross violation of the constitution, gross misconduct, and abuse of office.
However, Mwangaza pleaded not guilty to all of the charges leveled against her.
This signaled her team’s determined fight to defend her from the allegations and prevent impeachment when the Senate voted at the end of the hearing sessions.
Ndegwa Njiru, the Meru County Assembly’s Lead Counsel, has urged the Senate to consider impeaching her.
“Hon. Senators you’re being called upon for a third time to interrogate the character and ability of Governor Kawira Mwangaza to govern. This cannot be personal vendetta or malice against the Governor,” Ndegwa told the Senate.
“We’ll show you, Senators, how families have broken in Meru County because of Governor Kawira Mwangaza’s remarks. We’ll also show you how public resources are being plundered under her watch.”
Governor Mwangaza’s Advocate Elias Mutuma, on the other hand, claimed that the Meru County Assembly filed another impeachment motion while still defending her second impeachment attempt.
“They went and created a pathological lie, believed it and want to force us to believe it,” Mutuma told the Senate.
Her supporters also informed the house that the mover of the current impeachment motion, Zipporah Kinya, had previously warned the nation that they would impeach the Governor six more times.
He continued to argue that the stalemate was only caused by statistical counts.
Hon. Zipporah Kinya, who moved the motion, justified her petition by stating that the impeachment was valid and supported by the majority of County Assembly members.
“Once I introduced this motion to the Members of the County Assembly, my motion was supported by 49 members of the County Assembly out of the 69 members as per the law,” she told the Senate.
Mwangaza was accused of grossly violating the Constitution by allegedly revoking CPA Virginia Kawira Miriti’s appointment as CEO of the Meru County Public Service Board.
“The appointment of the CEO of the Public Service Board can only be revoked with a vote of not less than 75% of all Members of the County Assembly of Meru.”
ODM Slams Meru MCAs For Impeaching Governor Mwangaza
