Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza was facing seven counts, including misappropriation of public resources.
She was tried in the Senate plenary after 59 out of 69 Meru Members of County Assembly voted for her ouster
Most senators voted against her impeachment on all seven counts, including the illegal naming of a public road after her guitar-loving husband, Murega Baichu
Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza was set to know her fate on Thursday, November 9, after senators voted on her impeachment motion, and to her delight, the vote ended in her favour.
How did senators vote on Kawira Mwangaza’s impeachment?
This was after 59 out of 69 Meru Members of County Assembly voted to impeach her, citing seven grounds.
The 47 senators who were in the House in the vote that took place after midnight voted on seven charges.
The first charge was misappropriation and misuse of county resources. On this accusation, 19 senators voted to impeach Mwangaza, but 28 voted to disapprove of the MCAs.
This meant that 40.43% of the senators voted to impeach her, while 59.57% voted to uphold her reign.
The Senate agreed to address the matter in plenary and not in committee, as happened when the County Assembly impeached her first.
After a trial that took two days and forced the senators to stay past midnight on the second day of the hearing, most legislators voted against the accusations raised by the MCAs, who have been at loggerheads with Mwangaza
How Kawira Mwangaza survived impeachment during Senate vote.
The second charge Mwangaza faced was nepotism and related unethical practices; five senators supported her impeachment, and 42 voted to shoot down the accusation.
Here, she survived impeachment by 89.36%, as those who wanted her out managed a paltry 10.65%.
On the third charge of bullying, vilification, and demeaning other leaders, 93.62% of senators voted against Mwangaza’s impeachment, with the remaining 6.38% voting for her ouster.
On this one, three senators voted to impeach her, with 44 voting to uphold her leadership as Meru governor.
https://twitter.com/HonAmasonKingi/status/1722365450862952834?t=9zOzOhZfx3rg5uwUh_Q5Xg&s=19
Senate Speaker Amason Kingi tweeted SENATORS SPARE GOVERNOR KAWIRA MWANGAZA
“Senators have tonight cleared Hon Kawira Mwangaza, Governor of Meru County of seven charges brought against her in an impeachment motion by the County Assembly of Meru. The Senators, in a vote, determined that all the seven charges have not been substantiated,”.
The fourth charge Mwangaza faced was illegal appointments and the usurpation of statutory powers.
43.48% of the senators voted to impeach her, while 52.27% voted in her favour, an equivalent of 20 voting for her ouster and 27 in her favour.
On the fifth count of contempt of court, three senators supported the motion, while 44 voted against the accusation.
This means 6.52% of the Senate voted to impeach her, while 93.62 voted in her favour.
Kawira Mwangaza on the spot for naming road after husband Mwangaza survived a sixth charge of illegally naming a public road after her husband.
Four senators voted to impeach her, with 43 others voting to save her from being ousted. She survived with 91.49% of the vote, as only 8.51% of senators voted to oust her
Finally, as everyone held their breath, waiting for the verdict, most senators voted against the seventh charge of contempt of the assembly.
Ten senators (21.28%) voted to impeach her, and 37 others (78.72%) voted to uphold her reign.
At the beginning of the vote, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi clarified that Mwangaza would lose her seat if only one of the charges against her could stand.
To her delight and reprieve, Mwangaza was vindicated on all seven charges by the Senate, and she will continue to serve as the Governor of the County Government of Meru.