Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has been suspended from the Senate for three consecutive sitting days after refusing to withdraw remarks in which he described President William Ruto’s recent roadside pronouncements as “yapping.”
The disagreement first arose during Wednesday’s afternoon sitting, while Omtatah was contributing to a discussion on the President’s comments regarding the closure of small businesses run by foreigners and the Tata Chemicals matter. Omtatah argued that Ruto’s roadside declarations breached the Constitution.
“The roadside pronouncements by the President, first of all, violated the Constitution, Article 135, that does not allow the President to go yapping around and saying things that have not been approved,” he said. Senate Speaker Amason Kingi ruled the word “yapping” unparliamentary and directed Omtatah to withdraw it, but a quorum hitch raised by Garissa Senator Mohamed Faki led the House to adjourn before the matter could be resolved.
The dispute resumed on Thursday, September 10, when Omtatah was given a fresh opportunity to comply with the Speaker’s directive. Rather than withdrawing the remark outright, he sought to explain his position.
“I rise to address this House on the requirement you have placed upon me to withdraw my statement regarding the President’s recent roadside declaration. I wish to do so not out of defiance but out of deep respect for this House and the integrity of our parliamentary language. The term I used was not unparliamentary,” he said.
He went on to defend the word by invoking precedent from the Westminster Parliament, prompting a sharp response from Kingi. “We are not in the Westminster Parliament. This is the Kenyan Parliament with its Standing Orders,” the Speaker said.
As Omtatah continued addressing the chair instead of withdrawing the remark, Kingi warned him against pushing the matter further. “Mr Speaker, sir, don’t dance on a slippery slope. I’m answering your order, Mr Speaker, sir,” Omtatah responded, insisting that “yapping is not unparliamentary” and urging the Speaker to check the parliamentary record. Kingi rejected the explanation and ordered him out of the chamber.
“I order you to leave the chamber for three sitting days consecutively. You may leave now,” he said, later directing the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove him after Omtatah continued speaking. “Sergeant-at-Arms, kindly get the honourable senator out of the chamber,” Kingi instructed. Reminding the House of the rules governing debate, Kingi added: “You may not respect me, but respect the Standing Orders that you yourself took part in formulating and adopting.”
The suspension drew objections from several senators. Kakamega Senator Bonny Khalwale argued that the punishment amounted to a restriction on free speech. “If we are going to start punishing Senators for their opinions in this House, it means, Mr Speaker, we are breaching the doctrine of freedom of speech in this House,” he said.
Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang also urged caution, questioning whether remarks made amid a quorum dispute warranted suspension, and noting that excluding a senator from the chamber effectively denies that senator’s county representation for the duration of the punishment. “I want to dissuade you and your panel from invoking that nuclear option of suspension and excluding members from this House,” Kajwang said.
Speaking a day after his suspension, Omtatah remained firm on his position, telling reporters he stood by his description of the President’s remarks on undocumented immigrants and the closure of foreign-run small businesses.
He cited a 2020 exchange in the British House of Commons to support his argument that the word fell within acceptable parliamentary language, and said he intended to keep raising what he considers unconstitutional declarations by the President.
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