Azimio MPs' attempt to pull out of House Business Committee rejected

A past sitting of the National Assembly. (Photo: National Assembly)

By Lucy Mumbi
Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Wetang’ula dismissed the withdrawal, stating that it was time-barred since the matter had already been put before the House and any withdrawal would require parliamentary approval.

The National Assembly has approved the membership of the House Business Committee without opposition after Speaker Moses Wetang'ula blocked an attempt by the Azimio coalition to withdraw its nominees.

Lawmakers endorsed the list through acclamation after Wetang'ula rejected a move by Minority Leader Junet Mohamed to revoke Azimio’s representation. Junet sought to withdraw the nominees after the secondment of a motion by Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah.

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Earlier, Wetang’ula ruled that the Kenya Kwanza coalition remains the Majority in the House with 165 members, while Azimio has 154. He stated that the leadership structure in Parliament would remain unchanged since he had not received any formal communication from either side seeking to alter the current arrangement.

His ruling was consistent with a 2022 decision he made on the matter, which the High Court recently ruled could not stand, arguing that there was no evidence Kenya Kwanza had legally accommodated 14 MPs who defected from Azimio-affiliated parties.

In response to the Speaker’s ruling, Junet announced that Azimio would withdraw its nominees from the House Business Committee in protest. The committee is responsible for determining the parliamentary agenda, issuing directives on priority legislation, and scheduling debates on reports from other committees.

“I have no intentions to speak on your ruling, Mr Speaker. I want to speak on the matter before the House now,” Junet said, standing on a point of order.

“Under instructions from our parliamentary group, before you put the question, I have been asked to convey to you on the floor of the House that we have withdrawn our members from the House Business Committee,” he added.

Junet further argued that without Azimio’s input, any decision made by the committee would be invalid.

“Now you can consider me as Majority or Minority, whichever way you take,” he said.

However, Wetang’ula dismissed the withdrawal, stating that it was time-barred since the matter had already been put before the House and any withdrawal would require parliamentary approval. He further noted that Junet had already submitted Azimio’s list to the Clerk of the National Assembly in writing on February 10.

“Once a question has been put on a motion, it is in the possession of the House. As such, the motion cannot be withdrawn without the leave of the House,” Wetang'ula ruled.

Ichung’wah also dismissed Azimio’s withdrawal attempt, insisting that the committee would proceed with its mandate.

“The House Business Committee is duly constituted. With or without the participation of the four members from Azimio, the committee will sit. Mr Speaker, as chair of the committee, you will be advising on when to have our first sitting, hopefully after the adjournment of this House this afternoon,” he said.

He criticised ongoing wrangles over House leadership, arguing that they should not overshadow the responsibilities of MPs to serve Kenyans. “That is what we should put ahead of any other consideration.”

Ichung’wah also questioned why legislators were contesting the Majority leadership position when the privileges attached to it were similar to those enjoyed by the Minority leadership.