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{
    "id": 970063,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/970063/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 46,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Charles Njenga",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, and honourable Members, I wish to address only two issues of the submission made by counsel. First, his submission was that the mandate and the power of the Senate is limited only to the investigation on the question of substantiation of the charges; far from it! This Senate has had occasion to sit on over eight impeachment proceedings. In two of them, which I participated in and some of the Members are still here, the Senate said clearly that part of its mandate is to investigate whether the process at the County Assembly was correctly carried out. At paragraph 75 of the report of the Gov. Mwangi wa Iria Special Committee, which is within the records of the Senate, the Senate settled this point. It said:- “It is incumbent upon the Senate to determine if there was any violation at the county assembly” That was reiterated at the Report of Gov. (Prof.) Chepkwony, the Governor of Kericho County, at paragraph 234:- “The Special Committee has a duty to defend the Constitution in line with Article 31 and 94(4), by confirming the propriety of the proceedings before it that preceded the proceedings before the Senate. That is the proceedings before the county assembly. Therefore, part of your constitutional and statutory mandate is to confirm that the Motion that was brought by the County Assembly before you was properly passed. That is a settled question by precedent of this honourable House. Mr. Speaker, Sir, on the question of what the remit of the Senate is with regard to this nature of proceedings, Section 33 of the County Governments Act provides a very special jurisdiction to the Senate when hearing impeachment proceedings. It is not a judicial function; it is a quasi-judicial function that is described by statutes as investigative. You are here to investigate; that is the word used four times at Section 33. In an investigation, it is neither an adversarial nor a court-centred process. The Senate has power to inquire as to the proceedings that preceded the matter coming to the Senate. You have been told that some of these questions were not raised at the County Assembly. Witness No.1 confirmed that the Governor had sent two lawyers. He has also confirmed that those two lawyers were denied audience. They could not access the logs or any documents. They were told, “Go like the ordinary mwananchi, sit at the gallery"
}