‘Kenya Kwanza is lawfully the majority coalition’ – UDA
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) has clarified its position as the majority coalition in the National Assembly, following confusion over a High Court ruling made on February 7, 2025, regarding parliamentary leadership.
In their ruling, Justices John Chigiti, Lawrence Mugambi and Jairus Ngaah stated that the Kenya Kwanza coalition, which UDA falls under, is not the majority party in the National Assembly clarifying that the determination of the majority party coalition was made by Kenyans during the August 2022 general elections.
The court also declared that National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula violated the Constitution when he made the controversial determination regarding which party or coalition was the majority in the Assembly.
UDA’s clarification
In a press statement issued on February 13, 2025, UDA dismissed the ruling arguing that the High Court judgement did not declare Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya Coalition as the majority party.
“For the avoidance of doubt and contrary to falsehoods circulating through various media platforms, the High Court never declared the Azimio Coalition as the Majority Party or Kenya Kwanza as the Minority Party,” UDA said.
The party cited parliamentary numbers showing that the Kenya Kwanza Coalition has 165 members compared to Azimio’s 154 members.
According to their figures, UDA holds 145 seats as the single largest party, followed by ODM with 83 members and the Jubilee Party with 28 members.
“Compliance with the High Court judgment requires that determination of the Majority and Minority Leadership be strictly based on official information provided by the Registrar of Political Parties. Publicly available information, held by the Registrar of Political Parties confirms the following distribution of Political Party/Coalition membership as of 11th February 2025,” the UDA statement reads.
“Based on the foregoing High Court decision, the Kenya Kwanza Coalition with a total of 165 members is lawfully the Majority Coalition, while the Azimio Coalition with a total of 154 members is the Minority Party within the meaning of Article 108 of the Constitution,” UDA added.
Wetangula’s decision
UDA’s statements came a day after National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula ruled to maintain Kenya Kwanza as the majority coalition.
In his February 12, 2025, ruling, Wetangula stated that while the High Court invalidated his previous declaration, it did not specifically identify which coalition held the majority status.
“The High Court judgment did not designate which side was the majority or the minority; it only annulled my earlier declaration,” he explained.
Wetangula maintained that the House leadership would remain unchanged, with Kimani Ichung’wah continuing as Majority Leader and Junet Mohammed as Minority Leader.
Impeachable offense
The Speaker’s decision incited immediate protests from Azimio coalition MPs, who staged a walkout from the National Assembly chambers, led by Suba North MP Millie Odhiambo.
Other leaders called for his impeachment.
In a statement on his X account on February 12, 2025, Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai accused Wetangula of lacking the necessary leadership qualities to manage the National Assembly effectively.
“Wetangula should be impeached. He is not able to read the mood of the house. His continued presence as Speaker is destructive to the country. He lacks the wisdom to manage the National Assembly,” Alai wrote.
Migori Senator Eddy Oketch supported Alai’s remarks, declaring Wetangula’s ruling an impeachable offence and accusing him of violating the Constitution.
“Violation of the Constitution is the highest impeachable offence. Even without the Speaker’s contemptuous ruling in response to the court declaration, Wetangula stands impeachable based on his initial violation of the Constitution. Any bold MP in the National Assembly should initiate his impeachment motion,” Oketch wrote on February 12, 2025.
