The impeachment of Kericho Governor Erick Mutai, for the second time in 10 months, has brought out the deep-rooted political differences between the county executive and legislature.
It also points to the perpetual differences between Dr Mutai and his deputy, Fred Kirui. The governor has also been at odds with County Assembly Speaker Patrick Mutai.
Dr Mutai is accused of presiding over an administration that paid out Sh85.7 million to 46 companies for goods and services not delivered, and for work not done.
Repeated attempts to reconcile Dr Mutai and Mr Kirui over the last three years have failed amid their on-and-off, hot-and-cold relationship. A total of 33 MCAs voted to remove Dr Mutai on Friday. The motion was sponsored by Sigowet MCA Kiprotich Rogony. The governor had the backing of just 14 MCAs.
“It appears Dr Mutai let down his guard, after surviving the impeachment last year, as his detractors were working round the clock to pull the rug out from under his feet, leading to the latest impeachment,” Mr Peter Langat, a youth leader and resident of Kericho County, said.
Mr Langat added: “The governor needed to ensure he had more than 20 MCAs on his side at all times, well aware there are powerful forces, in and outside the county, keen on elbowing him out of office”
Dr Mutai, addressed journalists after the impeachment and turned the heat on the Speaker (Patrick), claiming he wants him out of office by hook or crook.
“The electronic voting was tinkered with to declare a skewed, pre-determined vote,” he said.
Dr Mutai added: “The Speaker is keen on having my deputy – Fred Kirui – installed as a governor and later have him removed so he (Speaker) becomes the only one with power and influence in the region ahead of the next elections as he aspires to contest the governorship,” he said
Injuring of Mr Alfred Kirui, the Tebesonik MCA in Bureti sub-county, after chaos that followed Dr Mutai’s impeachment, further served as an indicator of the deep-rooted differences among local leaders.
Mr Kirui fainted after he was reportedly attacked by fellow MCAs and was taken to Siloam Hospital, where he was admitted.
Fist fights at Kericho Assembly after MCAs impeach Governor Eric Mutai
Several MCAs – male and female – went for each other’s throats as the chaos escalated. Some sprawled on the floor while others had their clothes shredded by their colleagues.
Dr Mutai faced charges of abuse of office, skewed, irregular and illegal appointments and sacking of senior officers, and nepotism in the appointments. He was also accused of presiding over the pilferage of public resources, double payments to contractors, and flouting the Public Finance Management Act, the Constitution and the County Governments Act.
He was also accused of advertising positions of health workers and early childhood development education teachers, well aware the county did not have the capacity to employ them. The governor was accused of doing this in an alleged effort to endear himself to the voters.
Dr Mutai also faced accusations that he operated with impunity by bullying county officers and members of the public, bringing dishonour and disrepute to the Office of the Governor.
On October 2, last year, Dr Mutai was impeached by 31 MCAs, but the Senate overturned the decision 12 days later, giving the governor a lifeline to continue serving in his office.
A truce between the governor, his deputy and the assembly Speaker and the motion mover (Mr Rogony) was hammered out, but it did not last as the differences played further, straining relationships between Dr Mutai, on one side, and Mr Patrick and Mr Kirui, on the other side.
Mr Kirui, the whistle-blower in the Sh85.7 million payment, has been accused of failing to report to his office for almost two years, affecting service delivery by the county government.
“How am I expected to be in the office when I do not have fuel, with my official car detained in a garage for over one year?” Mr Kirui said two weeks ago.
He added: “I have no assigned duties and my staff have been redeployed to other departments. I cannot come to read a newspaper and go home. That is not what I was elected to do.”
The Speaker has repeatedly rejected efforts to interview him on the issues affecting the county and the claims made against the county chief.
Then Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua — who was later impeached in October 2024 — attempted to reconcile Dr Mutai and Mr Kirui in 2023, but the truce was short-lived. He also hammered a truce between the Speaker and MCAs, which did not last. Squabbles in the assembly have also had a bearing on the strained relationship between the legislature and the county executive.
On November 24 last year, President William Ruto told the MCAs to stop internal wrangles and focus on development, repeating a position he’d taken on January 15, 2023, at Bomet Green stadium during a UDA thanksgiving ceremony after the dispute among the leaders first emerged.
“What are all these squabbles I hear about? One minute I hear the governor has been impeached, the next minute I hear you want to remove the Deputy Speaker (Erick Bett). What are all these about? Don’t you have better things to do?” Dr Ruto said at Kipsitet.
Differences between the governor and his deputy can be traced to the run-up to the last General Election. Dr Mutai and Mr Kirui, it emerged, were forced to combine forces in UDA primaries against former Energy CS Charles Keter.
Dr Mutai, then a political greenhorn, garnered 126,038 votes against Mr Keter’s 60,342, to claim the UDA ticket in the April 14, 2022 nomination.
Dr Mutai and Mr Kirui went ahead to win the August 9, 2022 General Election but fell out ideologically. They also disagreed on administrative issues, especially the appointment of top county government officials.
“From the onset, my deputy (Mr Kirui) was a mistake. I regret accepting to work with him. Instead of supporting me, he has turned out to be a political traitor, backstabber and has absconded duty, leaving me to shoulder the burden of running the county government alone,” Dr Mutai said last week.
The governor has denied the claims in the impeachment motion, saying he did not play any role in payments for tenders.
“When the time comes to go, I will go with my head high, as I am not guilty and not afraid. I am not perfect, and I am not an angel, as I am prone to making mistakes. But on this one, I am innocent,” Dr Mutai stated.
Dr Mutai said the alleged embezzlement of funds is not a political but criminal matter and that the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations were seized of most of the issues and a finding had not been released.
“The report which I received a day after the impeachment motion was filed gives me 28 days to implement the recommendations therein. But the motion mover tabled the impeachment before the house on the same day the report was released” Dr Mutai stated.
“When the time comes to go, I will go with my head high as I am not guilty and not afraid. I am not perfect and I am not an angel as I am prone to making mistakes. But on this one, I am innocent” Dr Mutai stated.
