Kericho Governor Erick Mutai has denounced his impeachment, describing the process that happened on Friday, August 15, as flawed, predetermined, and lacking transparency.
Speaking after the impeachment, Mutai insisted that no legitimate impeachment took place and accused the County Assembly of orchestrating a rigged system to impeach him.
“There was no impeachment in Kericho. We raised our issues on the floor of the house, and we came in person,” the embattled Governor said.
According to Mutai, the voting system used during the impeachment proceedings was compromised. He alleged that nine staff members of the County Assembly had already received access to the system before the voting began.
“I can confirm that 9 staff of the county assembly had already been given the link to prevote. That explains why at the beginning of the voting, it began with 6 votes, not one vote, then it went to around 20 something, and in a short time, it went to 32, then 33,” the impeached governor said.
He questioned the rationale behind using SMS-based voting when all 47 members of the County Assembly were physically present.
“The simple question I ask is this: Why do you resort to voting through SMS when the 47 members of the assembly are physically there. What is so difficult about asking people to stand and then counting them? We only asked them for a simple thing, fairness,” Mutai said.
The governor expressed his willingness to accept the impeachment if only it were conducted justly.
“If someone feels I should be impeached, I am ready to go home with my head held high, if fairness and justice are upheld,” he continued.
The embattled governor also criticised the digital voting system, claiming it lacked verification from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and other relevant authorities.
The embattled county boss hinted at taking the matter to court, alleging that he has enough evidence to challenge the move by the county assembly.
“We have other evidence that we are going to submit both in court and in the Senate,’’ the governor said.
Following the impeachment, the Assembly is expected to notify the Senate within two days, which then investigates the charges against the governor before either approving or rejecting the County Assembly’s move.
