Speaker Wetangula gives Parliamentary committee green light to vet IEBC nominees

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has directed the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) to proceed with the vetting of Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) nominees.

Speaking in an afternoon National Assembly session, Speaker Wetangula reaffirmed Parliament’s legislative role, reiterating that no one has the power to contest or stop its proceedings, but only the outcome.

He therefore ordered the committee to proceed with its vetting, noting that any aggrieved party can afterwards move to court to dispute the outcome of the process.

“For avoidance of doubt, nobody has the power under any law or our Constitution to injunct Parliament from doing its work,” stated Wetangula.

“I direct the JLAC Committee to proceed without hesitation and vet the nominees for chairman and members of IEBC and bring the report to this House. Any aggrieved party, whether in the Judiciary, the Executive or the general public, can then go to court and challenge.”

Wetangula further said that he would engage with the courts to ensure it does not issue orders suspending the Parliamentary processes in future.

The High Court had earlier issued conservatory orders stopping the gazettement of the IEBC nominees and their swearing-in.

During a Thursday morning session, the court, however, gave a green light to Parliament to vet them.

The file was then forwarded to Chief Justice Martha Koome for the empanelment of a bench that will hear and determine the issues raised in the petition.

This is after Justice Lawrence Mugambi noted that the issues raised in the petition touch on the sovereignty of the people.

The court noted that the case has raised serious questions that the court can't wave off and needs interrogations.

Justice Mugambi had previously halted the vetting process of President William Ruto’s seven nominees to the Commission after a petition was filed challenging the nomination process.

The National Assembly then asked the court to allow the vetting process, saying that judicial intervention at that stage was premature and contrary to public interest.

It also argued that stopping the process would undermine public participation and disrupt a time-bound constitutional exercise.

Through Deputy Clerk Jeremiah Ndombi, Parliament also contended that the interim orders were unjustified, as the petitioners failed to present a strong case warranting injunctive relief.

President William Ruto on May 8 nominated Erastus Edung Ethekon as the new IEBC Chairperson to succeed Wafula Chebukati who died in February this year.

Ruto also nominated six IEBC Commissioners from various regions, among them Registrar of Political Parties Ann Nderitu (Nyandarua).

The others are: Moses Alutalala Mukhwana (Kakamega), Mary Karen Sorobit (Uasin Gishu), Hassan Noor Hassan (Mandera), Francis Odhiambo Aduol (Kisumu), and Fahima Araphat Abdallah (Lamu).