By Dorothy Musyoka
The Speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Moses Wetangula, has reaffirmed that the Kenya Kwanza Coalition remains the Majority Party in the National Assembly, with the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party continuing as the Minority Party.
Delivering his ruling on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, Speaker Wetangula informed Members that the current House leadership remains unchanged.
“The Kenya Kwanza Coalition is the Majority Party while the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party is the Minority Party, the existing leadership of the House remains unchanged,” reiterated the Speaker.
The ruling follows a Point of Order raised by Hon. Millie Odhiambo-Mabona regarding a recent High Court judgment and its implications on the designation of Majority and Minority parties in the House.
Hon. Odhiambo-Mabona cited a ruling in the case of Kenneth Njagi Njiru vs. State Law and Jubilee Party of Kenya, where the court declared a previous Speaker’s communication on the Majority and Minority Parties to be unconstitutional.
She argued that, in light of this decision, the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party should now be recognized as the Majority Party, with Hon. Junet Mohammed as the Majority Leader and Hon. Robert Mbui as the Deputy Majority Leader.
In his guidance, Speaker Wetangula emphasized the constitutional basis for determining party leadership in the National Assembly.
He clarified that the High Court ruling did not invalidate past parliamentary business and that the judgment did not alter the composition of the House.
“It should be beyond doubt that there was no order of the Court in this regard to precipitate this kind of thinking and there cannot have been such a blanket order,” Speaker Wetangula stated.
He further noted that “the decisions which arise from the business transacted by the House have no relation to which party is designated as the Majority or Minority. They are decisions of the House as a whole.”
To definitively settle the matter, the Speaker referenced official Gazette Notices from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and coalition agreements from the Registrar of Political Parties. Based on a simple calculation of party memberships, the Speaker confirmed that:
Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party consists of 154 Members, drawn from the Orange Democratic Movement (83), Jubilee Party (28), Wiper Democratic Movement (26), Kenya African National Union (6), Democratic Alliance Party of Kenya (5), Kenya Union Party (3), United Party of Independent Alliance (2), and the Movement for Democracy and Growth (1).
Kenya Kwanza Alliance consists of 165 Members, composed of the United Democratic Alliance (145), Amani National Congress (8), FORD-Kenya (6), The Service Party (2), National Agenda Party of Kenya (1), Grand Dream Development Party (1), Democratic Party (1), and Chama Cha Mashinani (1).
Addressing concerns over potential leadership changes, Speaker Wetangula stated:
“To date, I have received no official communication from either the Kenya Kwanza Coalition or the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party proposing any alterations to their House leadership. Consequently, the leadership that was in place at the conclusion of the last session will remain unchanged.”
Additionally, Speaker Wetangula assured Members that the 14 lawmakers who belong to parties outside the two major coalitions, as well as independent Members, will receive equitable representation in Committee nominations.
The Speaker called on the Committee on Selection to expedite the reconstitution of House Committees, especially the Budget and Appropriations Committee, due to the urgency of considering the 2025/26 Budget Policy Statement within set timelines.