Isaac Terer disqualifies self as House discusses his conduct

What you need to know:

  • The move follows accusations that he allegedly swindled former double World Indoor 1,500m silver medallist Daniel Komen of Sh150 million.
  • Some ward representatives have already warned the Speaker that he is likely to be barred from holding public office in future should Mr Komen prove his case.
  • “If it is found to be true, then the Speaker does not deserve to hold any public office. We will adhere to the Constitution and impeach him,” Minority Leader Ramadhan Ali said.
  • On Tuesday, Mr Terer told the House that he would stay away from the assembly’s premises because his "name has been adversely mentioned in the matter".

Embattled Uasin Gishu County Assembly Speaker Isaac Terer has disqualified himself from chairing a special meeting that will discuss his conduct today.

The move follows accusations that he allegedly swindled former double World Indoor 1,500m silver medallist Daniel Komen of Sh150 million.

Some ward representatives have already warned the Speaker that he is likely to be barred from holding public office in future should Mr Komen prove his case.

“If it is found to be true, then the Speaker does not deserve to hold any public office. We will adhere to the Constitution and impeach him,” Minority Leader Ramadhan Ali said.

KEEP OFF

On Tuesday, Mr Terer told the House that he would stay away from the assembly’s premises because his "name has been adversely mentioned in the matter".

“I will disqualify myself from tomorrow's (Wednesday's) sitting because I am a person of interest in this matter. My deputy or any other member of the House will step in on my behalf,” said Mr Terer.

Majority Leader Josphat Lowoi is in the meantime expected to present a statement to the House on the matter after interrogating both the Speaker and the athlete.

“As members of the county assembly, we sometimes don’t rely on information in the media. We are waiting to receive a petition from the family of Komen or any other person before we start debating the matter,” said Mr Lowoi.

SHED LIGHT

Moi’s Bridge Ward Rep Daniel Sanga had earlier requested the majority leader to shed more light on the matter.

“This is a matter that is already in the public domain. We want a full disclosure on what is happening,” said Mr Sanga.

But Mr Lowoi said he did not have information on the matter since he had met neither the Speaker nor the athlete to listen to their side of the story.

“I cannot discuss this issue because I don’t have facts. I have asked to be given one day then I will give a detailed report on the matter,” he said. 

TERER DENIES

“And if need be, we will form a committee that will probe both parties so that we can know where the truth lies. As a county assembly, we have a committee to execute such mandates by adhering to the Constitution,” explained Mr Lowoi.

Addressing the press outside the chambers, Minority Leader Ali said he and his colleagues held a 'Kamukunji' — an informal meeting with the Speaker — where Mr Terer denied Mr Komen's accusations.

“After watching the expose, we expected the complainant to come forward and tell us his version of the story. Today, we have given a mandate to the leader of government business, Lowoi, to get to the bottom of this story and bring us the truth,” said Mr Ali.