Power wrangles make a comeback at the Nairobi County Assembly

The unity at the Nairobi County Assembly is now trading on shaky grounds as ODM MCAs pull out of Public Accounts Committee.

This comes at a time where a power battle is brewing within the ODM side of the assembly with Minority Whip Peter Imwatok and PAC chairman Wilfred Odalo at the centre.

On Tuesday Highrise MCA Kennedy Oyugi claimed to be lead 32 ODM MCAs who appended their signatures to remove Imwatok from his position.

What followed next was 15 MCAs belonging to PAC ( 3 ODM and 12 Jubilee) appended their signatures for the removal of their chairperson, Mabitini MCA Wilfred Odalo.

To counterattack the process, in a letter dated May 4, 2021, addressed to the speaker, Minority Whip Peter Imwatok discharged all 12 ODM MCAs including himself from PAC.

He noted that that the Minority leadership has been preserved to nominate any MCA who is qualified to be a chairperson of any Select Committee.

“It has come to my attention and that of the Minority house leadership, that yourself and other members of the PCA committees have been intimidating and coercing other members into singing for the purported removal of the current Chairperson Wilfred Oluoch Odalo, to which it’s the preserve of the Minority party leadership to the nominate the member (s) who is qualified to be a Chairperson of any Select committee,” reads the letter in part.

As a result, he invoked Standing Order 168(1) and discharged Wilfred Odalo, Moses Ogeto, Clarence Munga, Mourice Ochieng, Anne Caterine, Rose Ogonda, Lawrence Otieno, Peter Imwatok, Jared Okode, Jane Muasya, Osman Khalif, and Rosemary Masitsa from the committee.

Nairobi City County Assembly Standing Order 168 (1) states that the County Assembly party that nominated a member to a select committee, may give notice, in writing, to the Speaker that the member is to be discharged from a select committee.

The primary mandate of the PAC committee is to oversight the expenditure of public funds by Nairobi City County entities.

Thus being chaired by an MCA belonging to the opposition side.

Wading into the issues, Minority leader Michael Ogada said the actions taken by some ODM MCAs to remove their 'own' from powerful seats was against the party.

“Anybody collecting signatures purporting to remove the Minority Whip and PAC chair is doing it against ODM party. The exercise has not been sanctioned by the party,” he said.

Adding to the sentiments,Imwatok claimed that for ODM MCAs to remove their own from positions, they had to consult first with the leadership before taking any actions.

“ No ODM MCA will seat at PAC until we all agree on the way forward,” he added.

Majority leader Abdi Hassan Guyo said the PAC committee will continue to operate as usual, noting that the standing order gives a green light to do so if the committee attains quorum thus it can discharge its mandate.

Responding to the withdrawal of ODM MCAs from the PAC committee, he said it was not Jubilee's business if they decided to pull out.

Guyo said that a chairperson of a committee cannot force himself because he/she serves at the pleasure of members and if they lose confidence in you we can do nothing about that.

“Majority of PAC members lost confidence in their chair and invoked Standing Order 185, we cannot meddle in their work. Cause. The chair has been accused of gross accusations which will taint the image of the assembly,” he explained.

The Majority leader said Jubilee Party can't micromanage members in discharging their mandate and PAC members have the right to choose their chair who will be from opposition.

Standing Order 185 highlights when the majority of members in a committee resolves that it has no confidence in the chairperson, the report will be submitted to the Liaison Committee which shall as soon as it is practicable, direct the clerk to conduct an election for the chairperson.