IEBC gazettes Leshore to replace embattled Mwaura in the Senate

President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party has moved to fill the vacant position left by embattled former Nominated Senator Isaac Mwaura.

Former Samburu Senator Sammy Leshore, whose name was second after Mwaura on the party’s list of male nominees to the Senate has been picked to replace the latter.

A day after the Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka communicated to the House of the expulsion of Mwaura through a gazette notice, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) gazetted the nomination of Leshore.

“The deleted nominee (Isaac Mwaura) stands disqualified as the member to the Senate representing persons with disabilities,” the gazette notice read.

In his communication to the House on Tuesday afternoon, Lusaka said he received a copy of the Special Issue of the Kenya Gazette No. 102, dated May 10, 2021, containing Gazette Notice No 4597 communicating the occurrence of a vacancy in a Member of the Senate elected through a party list.

“It is important to note that the publication of this Gazette came to my notice for the first time during the lunch break this afternoon,” he said.

Court injunction

Mwaura had on the same day obtained a court order barring the IEBC and the Senate from acting on the determination of the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal dated May 7, 2021 which had upheld Jubilee’s plan to kick out Mwaura on the basis of indiscipline.

The court also stayed further implementation of his removal pending the inter-partes hearing which is slated for  May 24, 2021.

However, Jubilee Party Vice Chairman David Murathe charged that although Mwaura got the court injunction, he had not served the respondents including the Jubilee Party which expelled him.

“Mwaura did not serve the IEBC, the Government Printer and Speaker of the Senate. He only served Office of the Registrar of Political Parties after the name had already been removed from the register of the party,” said Murathe.

The vocal Jubilee official further told Mwaura that he obtained the court orders too late in the day.

“It’s too late. The replacement of Sammy Leshore had already been done. Those orders are coming after the action has already been taken.

They have not served anyone. The party will appear before the court if served. But he will be challenging the expulsion from outside,” Murathe added.

On Tuesday, Senators allied to Deputy President William Ruto came to the defense of their embattled colleague citing violation of High Court orders that had injuncted his removal.

Mwaura was nominated by Jubilee Party in 2017 and was serving his first term only to switch allegiance to the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), associated with Deputy President  William Ruto.