Kimani Ichung'wah Threatens William Ruto with Impeachment Motion: "We've Powers"
- President William Ruto accused Members of Parliament and senators of carrying out bribery to pass or reject bills
- This statement sparked outrage from legislators, including Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung'wah, who seemingly threatened the head of state with an impeachment motion
- Ichung'wah highlighted the reasons why the members of the National Assembly have the power to remove the president from office
Faith Chandianya, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and Current Affairs in Kenya
The Kikuyu Member of Parliament, Kimani Ichung'wah, has seemingly responded to President William Ruto's allegations against MPs.
Source: Facebook
Ichung'wah, who has always been the head of state's close ally, seems to have changed his stance.
Can MPs impeach William Ruto?
Speaking at the National Assembly on Tuesday, August 19, Ichung'wah stated that the Members of Parliament have the power to impeach any member of the Executive, including the president.
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"This House has powers under this constitution to impeach those in the Executive, and those in the Executive can do nothing to remove you from office," Ichung'wah said.
He argued that the Parliament has elected men and women who were chosen by the people to represent them and oversight the government.
Therefore, Mr. Speaker, when we oversee the Judiciary and the Executive because we have that singular role as enshrined in this constitution, we do not do it as a favour to anybody. Not to the president, not as a favour to those serving in the Executive. We do it on behalf of the people," Ichung'wah added.
Can MPs be removed from office?
While subtly hitting out at the president, Ichung'wah asked MPs not to let themselves be intimidated into not carrying out their duties as elected officials.
Emphasising the role of the MPs, Ichung'wah said that legislators were elected to exercise oversight even over the Executive, including the president and his office.
"They can do nothing to remove you from this House. Absolutely nothing. Because that is how we crafted our constitution, honourable speaker," he affirmed.
Nelson Havi challenges MPs to impeach Ruto
In a separate incident, former Law Society of Kenya president Nelson Havi challenged the legislator to remove the head of state from office.
Havi was reacting to Ruto's remarks, whereby he accused MPs and senators of taking bribes in order to influence how they voted for certain bills.
The former LSK president told the MPs to take action if they truly felt offended by the head of state's remarks.
Source: Facebook
Expressing the implications of the matter, Havi told the MPs that the matter was about safeguarding the public trust in institutions.
He argued that the credibility of both the Parliament and the presidency was at stake, adding that the country deserved clarity on the matter and not blame games from the executive and the legislature.
According to Havi, either the president or the Members of Parliament was telling the truth about the bribery claims.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
