Governor Kawira Mwangaza has been impeached for the third time by the Meru County Assembly amid allegations of serious misconduct and legal violations.
In a decisive vote, where an overwhelming majority of 40 out of 69 voted in favour, it achieved the required two-thirds majority. Seventeen voted against the motion, while three others abstained.
It’s now a decision time for the Senate, which will either give the direction to open the door for the eventual removal of Mwangaza from office, or have her reinstated. She is the first governor in the country to face multiple impeachments.
The motion was moved by the Deputy Majority Party Leader, Zipporah Kinya, who accused Mwangaza of a raft of infractions. According to Kinya, Mwangaza “illegally revoked the appointment of Virginia Kawira as the secretary of the county public service board,” something that was solely supposed to have been done by the county assembly.
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Kinya also brought to light Mwangaza’s failure to appoint key persons to boards such as the Meru County Revenue Board and the Meru Microfinance Corporation, which Kinya termed as crippling the operations of such fundamental bodies.
Mwangaza was also accused of deceiving the people by providing incorrect information that a fundraiser for Sniper’s family had raised Sh86 million.
On abuse of office, Kinya cited an Auditor General’s report that indicated Mwangaza had employed 111 workers, among them 79 cleaners, whose work could not be seen. Kinya went on to claim that Mwangaza continued to pay one Christus Manyara, a public communication officer initially linked to the murder of Daniel Muthiani, while in remand.
The Senate’s verdict will seal whether Mwangaza will lose her seat.
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