NAIROBI, Kenya- A heated session engulfed the National Assembly of Kenya on Tuesday after two prominent Members of Parliament were removed from influential House committees, sparking protests and controversy on the Assembly floor.
The session saw Caroli Omondi, the Suba North MP and chairperson of the Constitution Implementation Oversight Committee (CIOC), and Antoney Kibagendi, the Kitutu Chache South MP and vice-chair of the Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education, lose their committee leadership positions following a reconstitution motion approved by the House.
Opposition legislators, particularly from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), decried the changes as a politically motivated purge rather than a routine reallocation.
Omondi protested that due process had not been followed under parliamentary rules, arguing that he had not been properly notified or given a chance to respond before his removal.
“I have not been accorded an opportunity to be heard, neither has the Speaker informed me that he received a notice, nor has the party whip shared a letter recommending my removal,” Omondi told the House, demanding formal documentation of the action.
ODM rebel MPs punishedODM rebel MPs Caroli Omondi, Antony Kibagendi de-whipped Omondi chaired Constitution Implementation CommitteeOmondi: They’re removing me because they want to rig elections Kibagendi removed from two powerful house committees #CitizenExplainer
Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah countered that the changes were part of a broader committee reconstitution following the by-elections that altered party representation, and not a targeted discharge.
He described claims of unlawful removal as “misleading”.
Speaker Moses Wetang’ula intervened to defend the process, clarifying that what occurred was a reorganisation of committee membership rather than a formal discharge, and urged House leaders to ensure affected MPs remained assigned to at least one committee.
The dramatic confrontation has laid bare simmering tensions within the broad-based political arrangement between ruling and opposition forces, with lawmakers trading accusations about party discipline and oversight roles ahead of the next general election cycle.
