Orwoba Storms Parliament, Blocks Gate

Former Nominated Senator Gloria Orwoba was on Wednesday morning barred from accessing the Senate chambers during a plenary hearing on the impeachment of Kericho Governor Eric Mutai.
The incident occurred after security officers manning the gates of the Parliament Buildings stopped the former lawmaker from entering, despite her presenting a court order reinstating her position.
Orwoba’s attempts to plead with the officersto let her in proved futile after the security personnel insisted that they had not received instructions to allow her in.
Speaking outside the parliament buildings moments after the tussle, the former legislator expressed frustrations over the denial, accusing the Senate of allegedly contravening the law.
According to her, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi went against the Constitution by allowing the newly nominated Senator, Consolata Nabwire, to attend the proceedings.
She went on to term Nabwire a stranger, claiming that the Senate’s decision to hold the impeachment sitting in the presence of a stranger was a grave violation of the law.
While lamenting the matter, the former UDA senator called on the residents of Kericho to rise to the occasion and oppose the Senate proceedings, since they were unlawful.
“As long as Consolata is sitting in the Senate now, that sitting is unlawful. She is a stranger on the floor of the house. No impeachment is going on with a stranger in the Senate,” Orwoba decried.
“The Speaker of the Senate, Amason Kingi, continues to entertain lawlessness. The people of Kericho should know that they are being shortchanged because whatever is happening inside the Senate is unlawful,” she added.
The drama comes a week after the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal directed the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) toreverse all actions taken against the former Senator.
The tribunal ruled that Orwoba was not given a fair hearing and that the party’s hearing of the matter was marred by legal and procedural irregularities.
In its ruling, the tribunal described UDA’s disciplinary process as politically motivated, stating that the former lawmaker was never given access to the committee’s ruling, preventing her from appealing.