'Lobbying is usual. Whether it was a committee or plenary, you would expect lobbying'
Image: FILE
Lobbying intensified on Monday ahead of Tuesday’s impeachment trial of embattled Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu, who is charged with graft.
Waititu was last month impeached by MCAs citing abuse of office and the corruption case that is in court.
The Star on Monday learned that the Kieleweke and Tangatanga factions of his Jubilee party were in a last-minute rush to woo senators to either send Waititu home or reverse his impeachment.
Kieleweke, a faction allied to President Uhuru Kenyatta, reportedly want Waititu's impeachment confirmed by the Senate while the Tangatanga faction that is loyal to Deputy President William Ruto are keen on saving the embattled governor for political reasons.
Waititu is expected to appear before all the 67 senators, alongside his accusers – the county assembly which voted to impeach in December.
The ward representatives have listed gross violation of the Constitution, abuse of office and gross misconduct for the removal of the governor.
Should the Senate uphold any of the charges, Waititu shall stand impeached and will subsequently vacate office.
Senators last week rejected attempts by Majority leader Kipchumba Murkomen to form a special committee of 11 members to probe the charges, effectively giving the governor an uphill task of defending himself before the plenary.
Representatives of the county assembly will present the charges against the governor and defend their decision on the floor. Thereafter, Waititu and his lawyers will take the floor to counter the allegations.
The county boss will likely know the Senate's decision on Tuesday should the lawmakers conclude the hearings and voting before midnight. If that fails, then the matter will be concluded on Wednesday.
It emerged that the Senate will first deal with a preliminary objection raised by the governor. He has protested the manner in which the MCAs prosecuted his impeachment, saying the process was unprocedural.
Waititu, through lawyer Ndegwa Njiru, protested to Senate Speaker Kenneth Lusaka that there was no requisite quorum in the House during his impeachment.
“Standing orders require us to deal with preliminary objections first and we have 30 minutes to do that. After that, we shall then listen to the full charges and defence,” Minority Chief Whip Mutula Kilonzo Jr said.
The Makueni senator confirmed that lobbying was going on ahead of the high stakes trial.
“Lobbying is usual. Whether it was a committee or plenary, you would expect lobbying,” Mutula said.
He added, “The reason why the members rejected the formation of an 11-member committee was that all they need was to lobby six members out of the 11 but members argued that it will be much more difficult to mobilise an entire house.”
Murang’a Senator Irungu Kangata is President Kenyatta’s confidant who is leading the Kieleweke brigade. On Monday, the former Kiharu MP said they were persuading more senators to join their camp to uphold the impeachment.
“At least one chief executive of a county needs to go home to send the right message. Senate needs to support Uhuru's efforts in fighting corruption. Tomorrow (Tuesday) at the Senate proceedings for Kiambu – maybe this it," Kangata wrote of Twitter.
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei said some forces were keen to see Waititu impeached because of his close association with Ruto.
“We have dealt with many other cases but there has never been Kieleweke or Tangatanga. I think Waititu is being pursued because he is close to some of us or to the DP,” Cherargei said.
He accused Kieleweke senators of taking Jubilee politics to the floor of the House.
“There is a narrative being pushed by some senators because of the budding that they have for their own personal interest. Kieleweke tried by all means to bring politics. But our agenda is to protect devolution. We don’t want the Senate to become a stumbling block to the success of devolution,” he said.
Edited by R.Wamochie