The High Court Monday referred the dispute between Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza and local MCAs over a looming impeachment motion to arbitration by the Njuri Ncheke Council of Elders.
Justice Linus Phogon Kassan ordered the elders to submit a report on the outcome of an earlier mediation process ordered by President William Ruto.
In a ruling on Monday, July 29, 2024, morning, the judge directed Mwangaza, the MCAs and their lawyers to appear before the council of elders by Wednesday, July 31, for talks.
This drew condemnation online with many saying it was illegal. Others supported it as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism.
Justice Kassan said the court was committed to encouraging parties to accept the role of elders in alternative dispute resolution and deferred the case to August 20, to assess the progress of the talks.
Ms Mwangaza says that after the previous impeachment attempt was thwarted by the Senate, she extended an olive branch to her opponents to bring peace through talks.
“I particularly went out of my way to meet with the leaders and even attended a retreat for Members of the County Assembly to bridge any distance between the leaders…
“The leaders who lost in the last general election have been scheming to ensure my removal from office. The impeachment scheme against me has now become a continuous agenda that is being relentlessly pursued by the County Assembly,” she says in documents.
On Monday, Kassan issued interim conservatory orders against the MCAs suspending debate or action on the imminent impeachment motion against Ms Mwangaza.
The governor had last week moved to court to restrain the MCAs from debating an impeachment motion against her.
Through lawyers Elias Mutuma and Ashaba Mark, the governor claims that the proposed impeachment motion is flawed and driven by malice from her political opponents.
She claims that the MCAs have been whipped along political lines to impeach her in order to settle political scores for her opponents.
The MCAs, however, argue that the court has no jurisdiction at this stage to stop the Assembly from proceeding with the motion as planned.
On Wednesday last week, Justice Kassan noted that the matter was of great public interest as it was the fourth planned impeachment motion against Ms Mwangaza, the other three attempts have failed.
The matter will be mentioned on August 20.
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