Kawira accused of hiring relatives in Senate trial

The impeachment trial against besieged Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza commenced yesterday at the Senate with the Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) rallying the Senators to oust her.

Kawira denied all the seven allegations levelled against her by MCAs, saying the impeachment motion was contaminated with local politics. She dismissed the grounds raised by the MCAs as “too frivolous” to warrant her ouster from office.

“Do not be preoccupied by the allegories from Europe. Look at the evidence before you. Evidence is not considered. The evidence is weighed,” said Kawira’s lead Counsel Elisha Ongoya.

But one of the lawyers representing the MCAs, Marias Maranya told the senators that the fact that Kawira was appearing before them for the second time within a year, implies that the ‘centre has failed to hold.’
“If someone can be brought before you twice in one year, it means the centre cannot hold anymore,” he said.

During the daylong hearing at the Senate plenary, the MCAs accused Kawira of committing misconduct that warrants removal from office.

“When we appeared before you, the governor took the posture of an innocent and vulnerable victim of toxic masculinity, harmful patriarchy, gender stereotyping, gender discrimination and political machinations,” said Assembly’s lead lawyer Muthomi Thiankolu.

He went on: “We are submitting that by the governor has persisted on a series of misconducts that brought us here one year ago. The only change being the particulars, she is telling you that the senate doesn’t know how to do things properly, including how to impeach a rogue governor.”

First to take to the witness stand is Chief Executive Officer of Liquor Board Paul Mwaki who was sent on an indefinite compulsory leave but went to court and was reinstated to the office through a court order.

Mwaki took to the witness stand after the County Assembly alleged that the governor authorised payment to Dr John Ntoiti, Mwaki, Meru Microfinance Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Mbae and his Mewass counterpart Kithure Mberia despite the officers not rendering services to the county.

Compulsory leave

However, Mwaki shocked the plenary with an admission that he was receiving a salary for a period he was on compulsory leave.

Asked whether he was complaining about receiving a salary for services not offered by the governor’s lawyer Elisha Ongoya, Mwaki answered in the affirmative; “Yes I am complaining about having been paid without rendering services to the people of Meru. We were being paid monthly since we received the suspension letters from the end of September 2022.”

The plenary heard that in the court order that reinstated Mwaki and his colleagues, County Secretary Rufus Miriti had been listed as a respondent alongside the Meru County Public Service Board and the governor.

The senators also sought to establish the truth behind why contempt of court was listed as one of the grounds for impeachment of the governor.

Mohamed Chute (Marsabit) told Mwaki that he belonged to Kamiti for admitting that he had earned money without rendering any service to the people of Meru.

“You belong to Kamiti because you have been receiving money illegally,” charged Chute.

Mwaki in his response however argued that he alongside other officials who were suspended, had tried to go back to the office but at the time there were still officers who had been appointed to their positions in an acting capacity and that their appointments had also not been revoked.

“We have never refused to go back to the office. She bears the responsibility. We have been in court struggling to get back to work. We made efforts to get back to work but we could not,” said Mwaki.
Ongoya, for Kawira, however argued that the contempt of court charge was not against the Kawira but against the County Secretary.

Wrote letters

“The ruling of the Employment of Labour Relations Court confirmed that the salaries and benefits were to be fully paid. It was the County Secretary that was supposed to comply with the court order since he was the one who wrote the letters and not the governor,” said Ongoya.

But the county assembly’s lawyer Muthomi Thiankolu dismissed Ongoya’s assertion stating, “The governor has attempted to purge the contempt. The letters have not been rescinded. We have the other persons in an acting capacity. She was convicted and that conviction has not been set aside.”

The County Assembly Majority leader and mover of the impeachment motion Mawira Karia (Mitunguu), the second witness to take the stand, sought to portray how the governor employed her relatives in the county government.

According to Mawira, the governor ferried her relatives, some unqualified to China as technical officers to assess Cancer medical equipment.

The Chinese firm was supposed to set up a cancer centre in the county.

She’s accused of embezzling county funds through proxies, nepotism by hiring close family members and bullying and vilifying county leaders.

The MCAs accuse the governor of using her close relatives including her sisters Rose Kinyua and Miriam Guantai, brother Kenneth Guantai, brother-in-law Nephat Kinyua and her husband’s nephew Edwin Mutuma to embezzle public funds.

They claim the governor, through the relatives, withdrew county funds under the guise of payments for county supplies.

“The governor was involved in diversion and (mis)use of county resources (including funds and motor vehicles) to run the governor’s private entity dubbed Okolea,” the MCAs said.

The Assembly accused the governor of fraudulently misrepresenting her relatives as a ‘technical team’ for purpose of traveling to China.

She is accused of employing her relatives and those of her husband, some unqualified and assigning them diplomatic duties.

The embattled county boss is accused of excluding the county governor from the county executive committee, bullying and undermining her deputy, changing locks to DG’s office and arbitrarily relocating the office.

The lawmakers will thereafter take a vote to decide her fate. At least 24 out of 47 elected senators will be required to vote in favour of the motion to uphold the impeachment.