National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula has petitioned the High Court to throw out a case accusing him of contempt.
The case stems from his decision on which coalition holds the majority in Parliament.
On Friday, April 4, Wetang’ula, along with the National Assembly, filed a preliminary objection arguing that the contempt case was flawed and infringed upon their right to a fair trial.
Their legal team contended that the proceedings sought to introduce a new legal dispute that had no basis in law. They urged the court to dismiss the case entirely.
In their submission, the Speaker and the National Assembly stated that no enforceable court order had been issued against them.
“There is no directive from this Honourable Court that the 3rd and 4th respondents violated, warranting contempt proceedings,” they argued.
They further emphasized, “No court ruling required the 3rd and 4th respondents to take or refrain from taking any action that could be enforced through contempt proceedings.”
The contempt case was filed by 12 parties challenging Wetang’ula’s earlier ruling that declared Kenya Kwanza as the Majority Party in Parliament while designating Azimio la Umoja One Kenya as the Minority Party.
However, in February, the High Court ruled that Wetang’ula’s declaration was unconstitutional, asserting that Azimio la Umoja One Kenya was actually the majority party.
The three-judge bench, comprising Justices Jairus Ngaah, John Chigiti, and Lawrence Mugambi, determined that Wetang’ula had disregarded legal procedures when making his declaration on October 6, 2022.
The ruling indicated that he should have taken into account the Registrar of Political Parties’ report, which, as of April 21, 2022, showed that Azimio had 22 parties while Kenya Kwanza had only 15.
Wetang’ula, dissatisfied with the ruling, took the matter to the Court of Appeal, hoping to secure conservatory orders to halt the enforcement of the High Court decision.
However, the appellate court declined his request, stating that granting such an order would effectively endorse his assertion that Kenya Kwanza remained the majority party.
The judges also warned that issuing a conservatory order would interfere with the ongoing High Court hearings.
Following this latest development, the High Court has given the involved parties 10 days to respond to Wetang’ula’s preliminary objection.
Additionally, the Speaker and the National Assembly must also submit their responses to the contempt case within the same period.
The court has scheduled a hearing for July 17, 2025, to deliberate on the matter further.
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