After initially declining to testify in the impeachment case against her, Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza took the stand on Wednesday evening, December 28, on the last day of the hearing before the Senate Special Committee.
Whilst the governor took a firm stand in denying the charges against her, some questions proved difficult for her to answer within the precision required in the examination process.
The Lead Counsel representing Meru County Assembly, Muthomi Thiankolu, posed several questions to the governor as he tried to prove his side's case.
Land Tussle With Catholic Church
One of the outstanding queries from the Assembly's lawyer required Mwangaza to clear the air on her stand regarding a disputed piece of land that conflicted the governor against the leadership of the Catholic Diocese of Meru.
Whilst Mwangaza insisted that the land was under the ownership of the Meru County Government, the lawyer posed a question on whether the governor was aware of the interests of land, besides ownership under the provisions of Kenya law.
This was in response to allegations that the Governor had vilified the clergymen over the ownership of the land in question.
Mwangaza had earlier maintained that the land was the property of Meru County and was accused of maligning the clergy.
"Are you aware that leasehold, besides ownership, is an interest recognized in law?" the lawyer asked.
"This document would not justify the accusations you made against the church," Thiankolu added before Mwangaza finally agreed that the lease to the church was still active as per the evidence.
Ownership of Baite TV
The governor also appeared to struggle while responding to a question regarding the ownership of Baite TV.
When asked about the owner of the television station, Mwangaza initially affirmed that it was a registered Public Limited Company- to imply that there was no singular owner of the TV station.
However, Mwangaza was confronted with evidence of herself declaring in public that her husband was the owner of the station in question.
Goodwill in Resolving Stalemate
Mwangaza was also put on task to substantiate her earlier remarks stating that she had done everything within her ability to create harmony among all leaders in the county.
Uasin Gishu Senator Jackson Mandango asked her why she skipped a gathering in Meru County in which President William Ruto met with area leaders.
Mwangaza was, however, reluctant to give the reason she missed the meeting- and instead stated that the reason was communicated to the president.
"The President was in your county, you deliberately skipped the function- is true really what you are telling us?" Mandango posed.
"Thank you, honourable senator, you have seen from the video that has been played but you have seen from the videos here that they were hellbent on my impeachment. There is no way that I could have convinced them to talk," she stated.
Disbandment of Former County Executive Committee
The governor was also put to task to explain why she disbanded the former County Executive Committee by dismissing its members.
"Are you aware that the County Governments Act provides that incumbent CECs serve in office up to and until the new CECs assume office?" Mandango asked.
Mwangaza later acknowledged the existence of the above-mentioned provision which exposed her as having disregarded the law by dismissing them before her appointees were approved.
Appointment of Firefighters
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna also posed a question seeking clarification on an earlier claim made by the governor regarding her public appointment of firefighters.
Mwangaza had in her defense, noted that the two appointees selected were meant to assist in making calls in the event of a fire outbreak in the region and not serve in the county's firefighting department.
Sifuna, however, sought to establish the relevance of two people designated to make calls at a time when the majority of the population has access to mobile phones.
"Firefighting is a county government function, and you are saying that these people were going to be the ones to make calls, why would you need these people to be the ones to call the fire engines?” Sifuna posed.
"The number of people was entirely for me to decide because I was the one to pay them. They were not only going to make phone calls but also offer assistance to areas with such problems," she responded.
