- The Court now remains the only option available for impeached Kisii Deputy Governor Robert Monda to save his lucrative job and protect his political career from crumbling.
- The Senate on Thursday night voted overwhelmingly to impeached Monda after he was found guilty of gross misconduct, gross violation of the Constitution and abuse of office.
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The court now remains the only option available for impeached Kisii Deputy Governor Robert Monda to save his job and protect his political career from crumbling.
The Senate on Thursday night voted overwhelmingly to impeach Monda after he was found guilty of gross misconduct, gross violation of the Constitution and abuse of office.
The lawmakers indicted Monda for alleged receipt of a bribe of Sh800,000 from a resident to facilitate a job and misusing county inspectorate officers.
The development implies that Monda, upon gazettement of his impeachment by Senate speaker Amason Kingi, ceases to be the Deputy Governor of Kisii.
What Monda stands to lose
He will no longer earn a salary, or allowances or enjoy the immense benefits that come with the office of deputy governor that include round-the-clock police protection.
Worse, Monda has been permanently barred from holding any public office, including running for a political position in future.
Article 75 (3) of the Constitution bars a person impeached from a public officer from ever holding any public office.
“A person who has been dismissed or otherwise removed from office for a contravention of the provisions … is disqualified from holding any other State office,” the Article states.
The options
However, Monda has the option of moving to court – the only remaining avenue – to challenge his impeachment, and rescue his job and career.
Even so, the court can only overturn the ouster on procedural grounds at both the Senate and the county assembly.
During his hearing at the senate, Monda argued that the MCAs did not follow the laid down procedure, and attempted to persuade to dismiss the case on that ground.
However, the House found the MCAs to have followed the law and went ahead to uphold all the charges against Monda.
Successful appeals
Former Governors Martin Wambora (Meru) and Mohamed Abdi (Wajir) successfully challenged their impeachments in court on procedural grounds.
In the case of Abdi, the court found out that the County Assembly failed to conduct public participation.
As such, the court declared the impeachment, which was upheld by the Senate, irregular.
For Wambora, the court declared his impeachment null and void as it was done in breach of a court order.
Unsuccessful appeals
However, former Governors Mike Sonko (Nairobi) and Ferdinand Waititu (Kiambu) were not as lucky as the courts upheld their impeachments.
Consequently, they have been barred by courts from running for political office or holding an office in public service on the strength of the Article.
Sonko has already exploited all the appeal mechanisms after the Supreme Court declined to grant his request to allow him to run for the Mombasa Governor seat during the 2022 General Elections.