• The trial begins on Tuesday morning and will culminate in a decisive vote that will determine her fate on Wednesday evening.
Image: FILE
Embattled Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza has unleashed a strong team of nine lawyers as she faces off with MCAs in a marathon two-day hearings in the Senate.
The trial begins on Tuesday morning and will culminate in a decisive vote that will determine her fate on Wednesday evening.
This is the second time the governor will face trial in the Senate after only 10 months.
According to the list of lawyers sent to the Senate, Mwangaza will be represented by lawyers Elisha Ongoya, Elias Mutuma, Duncan Okubasu, Robert Mutembei, Bridah Kimathi and Batista Muirigi.
Others are Antony Mwenda, Collins Mwenda and their assistant Brainlee Maingi.
The county chief has also lined-up four witnesses including herself to testify in the impeachment case.
Others are Nicholas Kinyua, Adrian Arayaru and Dickson Munene.
The hearings start at 9am with pre-hearing time allocated for each party and preliminary objections, if any, before the governor pleads to the charges.
The parties will then be given an opportunity for opening remarks.
Thereafter, the county assembly whose lead lawyers are Muthomi Thiankolu and Marias Maranya, will take the flow to lay bare their case against the county chief.
They will present their witnesses during the hearing that will be conducted before the whole House.
Later, the governor's lawyers will cross-examine the witnesses. The senators will ask or seek clarifications from the witnesses.
On Wednesday, the governor will take the stand to defend herself against particular allegations raised by the county assembly.
Mwangaza will present her witnesses who shall be cross-examined by the county assembly.
Later, the House shall give the parties opportunity to give final remarks before they break for a few minutes to allow members deliberate on the accusations.
A motion shall then be moved to debate the arguments by the parties before the lawyers take a vote by delegation (elected members only).
At least 24 elected senators will be required to vote in favour of the motion to uphold the governor's ouster from office.
She is facing charges of misappropriation and misuse of county resources, and nepotism and related unethical practices.
The governor is also accused of bullying, vilifying and demeaning other leaders, making illegal appointments and usurping statutory powers.
Mwangaza also faces accusations of illegal appointments, contempt of court, illegally naming a public road after her husband and contempt of the assembly.
She denies wrongdoing in all the charges.
"Ours is all about evidence. If her evidence is watertight, then we will save her but if it is weak, then we will vote her out," Marsabit Senator Mohamed Chute said.
In particular, MCAs claim that Mwangaza embezzled county funds through the governor's relatives.
They say she withdrew county funds through false claims of payment for supplies and services rendered by the governor’s relatives, despite their being ineligible to tender for or supply goods to the county government.
They alleged that Mwangaza paid "full salaries and benefits" for over a year to four high-ranking county officials.
This is despite their not rendering any services to the county and diverting and misusing county resources.
The MCAs claimed that Mwangaza fraudulently represented unqualified relatives as a “technical team” for medical equipment inspection in China.
The legislators say she employed her husband’s nephew in a key county position and designated her brother-in-law as director of external linkages without transparent and competitive recruitment.
So far, the Senate has only found the charges in support of removal from the office of governor substantiated in four cases.
They were Embu's Martin Wambora on two occasions, but he was saved by the court, and Mohamed Abdi of Wajir who was also reinstated by the court.
Ferdinand Waititu (Kiambu) and Mike Sonko (Nairobi) were unlucky as their impeachments were successful and their court bids to overturn the process failed.
Other governors who were impeached but the accusations against them dismissed by the Senate were former Governor Paul Chepkwony, former Murang’a Governor Mwangi Wa Iria, Nyeri's first governor Nderitu Gachagua (deceased), former Taita Taveta's Granton Samboja and Anne Waiguru (Kirinyaga).
Former Machakos Deputy Governor Bernard Kiala was also cleared by the Senate after being impeached by MCAs.
Siaya Deputy Governor William Oduor was also saved by the Senate after the House cleared him of the charges.