NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 15 – Opposition Leader Raila Odinga has hit back at National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula for terming his critic remarks against him as ‘dirty politics and misleading’.
Through his lawyer Paul Mwangi, Odinga told off the National Assembly Speaker saying it’s was cowardly for the Office of the Speaker to issue ignorant statements against him and hide behind institutional titles.
“We shall ignore this and successfully ignore unfortunate adolescent tenor for a communication coming from such a high office,” he said.
Nevertheless, The Azimio La Umoja Leader tore into Wetangula’s statement where he defended his constitutional obligation to participate in State House events involving the enactment of bills into law.
Wetangula had defended his involvement in the process arguing that he is obligated by law to participate in such process, citing the United States system as a reference.
“The phrase ‘formally presenting the Bills for assent to the President’ which are relied on by the statement cannot be interpreted to mean walking over to State House and physically handing over the document to the President,” Odinga said.
“That is ridiculous and it is scandalous for the statement to even suggest that the Constitution meant so.”
The ODM Leader explained the provision for referring the Bill to the President doesn’t mean the Speaker should be in physical attendance.
“The actual words used by the Constitution are ‘refer the Bill to the President for assent.’ No conveyance of the person of the Speaker bearing the legislative instrument is contemplated,” Odinga noted.
Regarding Wetangula’s challenge of the Court of Appeal’s decision on Finance Act of 2023,Odinga advised Speaker Wetangula to stop focusing on emotional contestation and instead focus on sealing loopholes in the legislative process.
“This is not about an emotional contestation but rather properly identifying and upholding the public interest. Kenya would be better served by your officers engaging time and other resources in ensuring that the legislative process does not again end up being impeached by courts of law,” Odinga said through his lawyer.
He added; “For a State organ to pursue public litigation to a bitter end for the obvious purpose of bolstering its public image is what we have referred to above as adolescent;