Vocal Africa has filed a petition seeking to bar the Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula and the Senate Speaker Amason Kingi from engaging in active politics and election campaigns
The lobby group wants the court to issue a declaration that the conduct of the two speakers constitutes a breach of Section 13 of the Election Offences Act, No. 37 of 2016, Section 11 and Section 12 of the Leadership and Integrity Act, Cap. 182, Section 9 of the Public Officer Ethics Act, No. 4 of 2003, and Section 16(2) of the Election Campaign Financing Act, No. 42 of 2013.
In addition, the petitioner want the court to declare that the offices of the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Speaker of the Senate are constitutional offices whose holders are under a continuing constitutional obligation to preserve the institutional independence, dignity, integrity and impartiality of Parliament.
The lobby group also wants the court to declare that any use of the public moral authority, motorcades, security details, public platforms, or resources associated with the office of Speaker for partisan campaign purposes constitutes an unlawful use of public resources in breach of Section 16(2) of the Election Campaign Financing Act.
The court heard that Articles 73, 75 and 232 of the Constitution prohibit the holders of the Offices of Speaker from using the authority, prestige, influence or incidents of those offices to participate in or promote partisan political campaigns in a manner that compromises, or reasonably appears to compromise, the institutional independence of Parliament.
In an affidavit by Vocal Africa CEO Hussein Khalid, during the course of the year 2026, he observed numerous public reports concerning the increasing participation of the 1st and 2nd Respondents beginning as from 21st May 2026 and in organised political mobilisation activities associated with the re-election campaign of His Excellency President William Samoei Ruto.
“The vigor shown by the 1st Respondent is because there are rumors that the 1st Respondent is looking to be appointed as the running mate for President William Ruto as Vice President in the 2027 elections and succeed him in 2032,” Khalid said.
The said reports were published by national media houses, disseminated through publicly accessible electronic platforms and, in several instances, published by or through the official communication channels of the Respondents themselves.
“In or about April 2026, I observed an increasing pattern in which the Respondents appeared publicly at organised political events convened for the purpose of mobilising support for the Kenya Kwanza Coalition and for the reelection of the incumbent President,” he added.
The petitioner also wants an order directing the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to investigate the conduct complained of in this petition and to file before this Court, within sixty (60)
In addition, the lobby group wants the court to declare that the conduct of the two speakers is inconsistent with Articles 10, 73, 75, 94, 95, 96 and 232 of the Constitution, the Leadership and Integrity Act and the Public Officer Ethics Act.