High Court suspends case against Speaker Wetang'ula over Majority Party ruling
Justice Ngaah noted that the court could not proceed with the contempt application until the Court of Appeal ruled on Wetang’ula’s request for a stay of the judgment.
The High Court has suspended the hearing of a case against National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula over his decision to designate Kenya Kwanza as the Majority Party in Parliament, pending the determination of a related appeal at the Court of Appeal.
A three-judge bench comprising Justices Jairus Ngaah, John Chigiti and Lawrence Mugambi halted the proceedings, citing the pending appeal challenging a previous High Court ruling that had declared Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya Coalition as the Majority Party with 171 MPs, against Kenya Kwanza's 165.
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The legal battle stems from accusations by rights activists that Wetang’ula disregarded the High Court ruling by retaining Kenya Kwanza as the Majority Party and Azimio as the Minority. They had filed a contempt application seeking his punishment, arguing that his February 12, 2025, ruling was in defiance of the judgment.
Justice Ngaah noted that the court could not proceed with the contempt application until the Court of Appeal ruled on Wetang’ula’s request for a stay of the judgment, which is set for determination on March 21, 2025.
“Considering the matter pending before the Court of Appeal, this court cannot deal with the contempt application until the appellate court rules on the stay application,” Justice Ngaah said.
The judges scheduled the next mention of the case for April 4, 2025, to confirm the outcome of the appeal.
The activists had also sought an amendment to the court verdict issued on February 7, 2025, to reflect that Wetang’ula cannot continue serving as Speaker while simultaneously holding the position of Ford Kenya party leader.
The activists, through lawyer Kibe Mungai, argue that Wetang’ula’s role as Speaker while remaining a leader in the Kenya Kwanza coalition violates the law.
“This court should find that parliamentary proceedings presided over by Wetang’ula, as long as he remains the leader of Ford Kenya and a principal in Kenya Kwanza, are unlawful, null, and void from the beginning,” Kibe said.
The High Court had earlier ruled that Wetang’ula’s dual role was unconstitutional and that he could not serve as Speaker while simultaneously holding a leadership position in a political party. The activists maintain that by reaffirming Kenya Kwanza as the Majority Party, Wetang’ula has defied the court’s directive, which they argue had already settled the matter based on the August 2022 General Election results.
“The Speaker of the National Assembly has once again usurped and arrogated to himself the constitutional power to determine the Majority and Minority parties in the National Assembly despite the express findings of this court,” Kibe added.
According to Kibe, the High Court judgment made it clear that the Speaker should have recognised Azimio as the Majority Party based on the election results rather than seeking verification from the Registrar of Political Parties.
Following the High Court judgment, Wetang’ula, the National Assembly, United Democratic Alliance (UDA) MPs led by Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wa, Kenya Kwanza Alliance, UDA party, and Maendeleo Chap Chap party separately appealed the decision at the Court of Appeal.
The activists now want the High Court to amend its orders to explicitly state that Wetang’ula cannot continue serving as Speaker unless he resigns from his leadership roles in Ford Kenya and Kenya Kwanza.
“The only effective remedy for the unlawful ruling of the Speaker delivered on February 12, 2025, is to quash or set it aside,” Kibe argued.
As the legal battle unfolds, the outcome of the Court of Appeal ruling on March 21, 2025, is expected to play a significant role in determining the next steps in the dispute.
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