Trouble is brewing at the Kisii County Government after a section of Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) began the process of impeaching Deputy Governor Robert Monda.
The impeachment motion, which is being viewed by some as a well-calculated scheme to edge out the deputy governor or force him to toe the line, has already received the backing of 51 MCAs who have appended their signatures.
The motion was tabled by Ichuni Ward MCA Mr Wycliffe Siocha, who accused Dr Monda of violating the Constitution of Kenya (2010), abuse of office and gross misconduct.
"I have this morning given a motion of impeachment of the deputy governor over abuse of office, violation of the Constitution and for contravening the code of conduct," said Mr Siocha.
Nominated MCA Carren Magara said that the impeachment process is now on, and that due process will be followed.
"The allegations have been read in the assembly and we want to assure members of the public that we are going to follow due process and ensure that fairness is given to the deputy governor," she said.
She said that Dr Monda will be invited to appear before the MCAs and will be granted an opportunity to defend himself.
"You cannot be given a responsibility such as being a deputy governor and not take your work seriously," she said.
Ms Magara said that the allegations levelled against Dr Monda are deep. She said the House is up to the task and will ensure that the right thing is done.
Nyamache MCA Naftal Onkoba asked Governor Simba Arati to steer clear of the impeachment process to give room for fair administrative action.
Further, Mr Onkoba put on notice chief officers and chief executive committee members involved in corruption.
"To the chief officers and CECs that are involving themselves in corrupt deals and activities, your time is coming. If a motion comes to the assembly, we will keenly examine it and send you home so that people of Kisii County can be served diligently," he said.
The impeachment motion comes in the wake of a rift between Dr Monda and his boss, Governor Arati.
Towards the end of last year, the differences between the two leaders became clear when Dr Monda started raising issues touching on poor governance. He claimed that dissent was building up against him and his boss over their development record.
He wanted to delink himself from what he termed as ‘failures of his boss’ even as residents from his Nyaribari backyard dared him to resign for 'scuttling Mr Arati’s ‘development agenda.
The governor accused Dr Monda of collaborating with United Democratic Alliance party leaders in Kisii to fight him.
In November last year, the deputy governor stirred controversy when he hosted some of the governor’s critics for dinner, including one of his fiercest foes , Mugirango MP Sylvanus Osoro.
Other politicians present were Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka, Woman Representative Donya Toto, MPs Daniel Manduku, UDA national treasurer Japhet Nyakundi, and MCAs, many of whom have abandoned the Orange Party.
When the Nation reached out to Senator Onyonka on the tiff, he said the recent wrangles between the two leaders was becoming a major concern as it was hampering service delivery.
While he said that he is yet to go through the allegations levelled against Dr Monda, he believes that the impeachment motion was as a result of the governance and policy issues that the deputy governor has been raising frequently.
“I was the first person to raise a number of issues. I pointed out that Kisii has a problem, but people never took me seriously. Now everything is coming out clearly. We have a county that has governance issues and a leadership that is not willing to listen to issues being raised,” said Mr Onyonka.
He, however, stated that he will perform his oversight role as the senator and follow due process of law when handling the impeachment if it reaches the Senate.
“My responsibility as a senator is oversight, and I will do this while following the law. I promise to give my oversight report on the impeachment motion against the DG and other issues affecting Kisii as a whole when the right time comes,” said Mr Onyonka.
He warned of low development in the county if the wrangling among the leaders persists and if the two fail to agree to work together for the sake of the people.
“The Kisii community will continue to suffer when leaders continue to wrangle, quarrel and suspect each other on various issues,” said Mr Onyonka.
However, Dr Monda, remained undeterred in the midst of the impeachment motion storm.
He maintained that he will not be a puppet and will not be intimidated to support what he called 'lack of development', firing of staff said to be ghost workers among other issues.
Speaking to the Nation on phone however he stated that he is eager to know the details of the accusations levelled against him.
"I would like to know what I am accused of. If it is attending a church function where CS Machogu was, I would gladly admit it because I was there but I will wait and see what the motion has on me and then I will be able to respond accordingly," said Dr Monda.
He said he is still in talking terms with the governor, having spoken even on Tuesday afternoon.
