Wetang’ula wins Kenya Speakership race

Former Bungoma senator Moses Wetang’ula is now the Speaker of the National Assembly after his competitor in the race, former Speaker Kenneth Marende, conceded Thursday evening.

The National Assembly had gone into round two of voting for the coveted Speaker’s post after the first round failed to produce an outright winner.

In the first round, Mr Wetang’ula led with 215 votes against Mr Marende’s 130 votes compared to Moses. To win in the first round, one requires a two-thirds majority, or at least 234 of the 348 members in the House. In the second round, the candidate who gets majority votes is declared the winner.

However, as MPs prepared to go for a second round of voting, the Clerk received communication that Mr Marende had conceded, leading her to declare Mr Wetang’ula the winner.

In a battle of the wills between the country’s two leading political formations, Kenya Kwanza had fronted the Ford Kenya leader while Azimio had both Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka and Mr Marende. Mr Wetang’ula was projected to have an upper hand should Kenya Kwanza, which politically has more MPs, voted as a block.

Wetang’ula is now the eighth Speaker of the House since independence.

WHO IS WETANG’ULA?

Birth: September 13, 1956

Education: After his secondary education at Friends School, Kamusinga, he was admitted at the University of Nairobi where he graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree.

Politics: Mr Wetang’ula is the Ford Kenya party leader. He was first elected MP when the late former President Daniel Moi nominated him to parliament in 1993. Before then, he had served as a magistrate and also represented soldiers who were involved in the 1982 coup after attempt after he joined private practice.

He also served as chairman of the Electricity Regulatory Board after he lost in the 1997 general election. He was finally elected in 2002 and appointed assistant Minister for Foreign affairs. He was elevated to cabinet minister soon after the disputed 2007 presidential election, where he served until 2012 when he was redeployed to the Ministry of Trade. The reshuffle came after he found himself in the crosshairs of a 2012 coup in Mali in which soldiers overthrew the government of President Amadou Toumani Toure, forcing him into hiding. Mr Wetang’ula was eventually evacuated after being trapped in his hotel room for several days.

He was elected senator of Bungoma County in 2013.

Kalonzo dropped out of Senate Speaker race

In the Senate Speaker race, Wiper Party boss Kalonzo Musyoka dropped out after withdrawing his candidature.

The former Vice President pulled out in the morning through a letter addressed to the clerk of the Senate Mr Jeremiah Nyegenye.

Communicating the withdrawal, Mr Nyegenye said Mr Kalonzo’s name would not be in the ballot of candidates for the speaker’s position, dealing Azimio a huge blow.

“I wish to draw to the attention of senators that this morning, by a letter addressed to the clerk of the Senate, Kalonzo Stephen Musyoka withdrew his candidature for the position of the Speaker of Senate and his name will accordingly not be appearing in the ballot,” said Mr Nyegenye.

The Wiper party leader and former Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi were among seven individuals who were to fight it out for Senate speaker’s position.

Others were Isaac Aluochier, George Bush, Beatrice Kinyua, Fredrick Karuri, and George Kuria.

Mr Kingi was later declared winner and sworn-in as the Senate Speaker after garnering 46 votes out of a possible 66 on the first round of voting.