National Assembly Speaker, Moses Wetang’ula, has warned against the judiciary entertaining matters that are active before Parliament.

In a communication in response to the leader of the minority party, Junet Mohamed, on Thursday, May 29, 2025, at the National Assembly concerning the petitions on the IEBC nominees set to be vetted, Wetang’ula indicated that no institution has powers over Parliament.

“For avoidance of doubt, nobody has the power under any law or under the constitution to injunct Parliament from doing its work. Parliament is a constitutional body enjoined with the authority to discharge constitutional functions,” Wetang’ula remarked.

Matters before Parliament

The Speaker reminded the House that a matter is before Parliament, whether it’s in committee or is in plenary, the proceedings in the committee are akin to proceedings in plenary in future.

He equally stated that he had informed Chief Justice Martha Koome to form a colloquium to discuss and agree on the matter of litigation on issues before the legislature.

The remarks came after High Court judge Justice Lawrence Mugambi issued a ruling in the case where he lifted an earlier blanket order, in which he had restrained the National Assembly from proceeding with the vetting of the IEBC chairperson and commissioners.

Wetang’ula cautioned about the courts canvassing in matters that are actively before the House, such as in relation to the vetting of the IEBC nominees, whose names are already before the Departmental Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs.

Animosity between govt arms

The speaker equally noted that he would give a substantive and precedent-setting communication regarding the matter.

“We need each other, but we discourage and frown at any overreach by any arm of Government on another, especially on matters that are legally clear and morally untenable,” Wetang’ula said.

He added: “For the information of the House, I have asked the Chief Justice to form a colloquium with some Members of this House so that we do not continue talking at each other as Arms of Government.”

Junet had indicated that the courts risked setting a bad precedent and igniting unnecessary feuds between the legislature and the judiciary.

“This is something that has been pronounced upon by previous speakers that when a matter has been committed to a committee of the House, the courts have to wait until Parliament concludes the matter, then after that anybody who wants to go to court can litigate in the matter there,” Junet observed

The IEBC nominees are Erastus Edung Ethekon for chairperson, and the commission nominees include Ann Nderitu, Moses Mukhwana, Mary Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan, Francis Odhiambo and Fahima Abdalla.