The High Court in Eldoret has lifted orders which had suspended all operations of the Uasin Gishu County Assembly.
Justice Wananda Anuro lifted the orders following an application by the assembly through its lawyers led by Zephania Yego.
Wananda had a week ago issued the orders which stalled the county assembly operations following a petition which had been filed by a human rights activist Kimutai Kirui who argued that the assembly was not properly constituted.
“Your honour we pray that the orders be lifted because they have paralysed the county assembly operations and will also affect operations of the county government” said Yego.
He said issues raised by the petitioner could be dealt without paralysing essential services of the assembly and the county government.
Wananda agreed with the assembly lawyers and lifted the orders to enable the assembly carry out its mandate.
He directed the petition filed by Kirui be mentioned on October 18th for further directions.
Justice Wananda had issued the orders suspending all official sittings/meetings, deliberations by members of the county assembly of Uasin Gishu county assembly pending the hearing and determination of the petition.
Kirui in his petition argued that the law provided that the assembly shall not be fully and dully constituted for the first sittings after a general election unless all the members required under the Constitution have been fully nominated and their names published in the gazettte.
He said the county assembly of Uasin fell short of the required membership because the women and marginalised are not adequately represented.
Kirui noted that the county assembly of Uasin Gishu was not properly constituted since it does not meet the requirements set forth under the Constitution and therefore all its sittings bussines transacted and decisions made are null and void.
He further argued that the election of 10 members had been challenged in court which declared that they were not validly nominated.
He argued thats the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal through its judgment of Nov 22nd 2022 nullified UDA gender top up party list published on August 24th and upheld the list earlier published on July 27th, 2022 in compliance with election rules.
The activist argues that the assembly had been operating illegally and should sieze all operations until its properly constituted.
Last month the high court upheld the nullification of the nomination of 10 MCAs from President William Ruto’s UDA party.
The court order has been served in assembly clerk and speaker Phillip Muigei.
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