Ruto, Gideon supremacy battle at play as Baringo deputy speaker ousted

The supremacy battle between Deputy President William Ruto and Baringo Senator Gideon Moi played out at the Baringo County Assembly after the Deputy Speaker allied to Kanu was ousted in a heated debate.

Mr Ameja Zelemoi, who is also Churo/Amaya Ward Rep, was ousted on allegations of abuse of office.

The ouster motion debated on Tuesday afternoon was sponsored by the assembly’s Majority Leader Lawi Kipchumba and supported by 36 MCAs out of 45.

In the motion, the Majority Leader claimed that the Deputy Speaker, who hails from Tiaty, has a tendency of misusing assembly vehicles.

“Late last year, the assembly vehicle used by the Deputy Speaker was spotted at a hotel in Nakuru delivering cabbages, an incident that was widely reported in both mainstream and social media and it drew condemnation from the public,” said Mr Kipchumba.

Mr Zelemoi is also accused of assaulting Silale MCA Nelson Lotela last year within the precincts of the assembly.

TOUGH TIMES

“He is also accused of outright discrimination of some members of the assembly with divergent political views. For instance, he engineered the removal of Nominated MCA Betty Birchogo from the County Assemblies’ Forum and the removal of Diana Siriti as a Kanu Minority Whip,” said Mr Kipchumba.

In his defence, Mr Zelemoi said the accusations were tribal and fabricated to bring him down.

He said his removal was as a result of rivalry between Jubilee and Kanu and had nothing to do with gross misconduct as alleged by some MCAs.

Mr Zelemoi, who was elected on a Kanu ticket, blamed his woos on the DP, who he alleged sponsored a section of Ward Reps to oust him.

“I am a victim of supremacy battles between the DP and Senator Moi. I know my ouster had nothing to do with the accusations they brought on the floor of the House. I am not going to take this lying down and I promise that the Jubilee Party should brace for tough times ahead. If you want politics, let us now hit the ground and see the winner,” he said.

Mochongoi MCA Kipruto Kimosop confirmed that apart from the accusations against Mr Zelemoi, they also impeached him because they wanted to bring to the public domain that Baringo is a Jubilee stronghold and Kanu allied politicians from the region should desist from insulting the DP.

''Apart from the accusations against the Deputy Speaker, we also wanted to put it clear that the Baringo County Assembly is dominated by Jubilee party MCAs who can make major decisions.''