State House of Kenya. [Photo|kenyans.co.ke]In the event that NASA presidential candidate Raila Odinga wins the October 17 presidential polls, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said he will impeach him since he has the numbers at both National and Senate Assemblies.Uhuru made the remarks during a meeting with party Kamba leaders at State House Nairobi, Monday.Under the new Constitution, the president can be impeached on the following grounds.We compiled grounds under which a president can be impeached, as indicated below, an article first published by Daily Nation, in 2010.Article 144 states that an MP may at any time move a motion for the investigation of the president’s mental or physical capacity to perform his/her functions if the member is supported by at least a quarter of the legislators.If the motion is then supported by at least half of the MPs, the Speaker will inform the Chief Justice (CJ) of that resolution within two days.Within 7 days of receiving the information from the Speaker, the CJ is required to constitute a tribunal of three medical practitioners appointed by the body responsible for regulation of the practice of Medicine in Kenya (presumably the Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board), an advocate nominated by the Law Society of Kenya and one person nominated by the president or a member of his family.The tribunal is required to make an inquiry into the matter and report to the CJ and the Speaker within 14 days of its appointment. The Speaker is required to table the report in parliament within seven days of receiving it. If the report concludes that the President is capable of performing the functions of that office, then the Speaker will declare so in Parliament. This declaration will be final.However, if the report concludes that the President is unable to perform the functions, then Parliament will be required to vote on the report. If a majority of the House ratifies the report, the President will cease to hold office upon that declaration of the result of that vote.Article 145 states the method and circumstances of removal of the President from office by way of impeachment. An MP may move a motion supported by at least one third of Parliament seeking the impeachment of the President. The reasons for impeachment are specified to be either gross violation of the Constitution or any other law, the commission of a crime under national or international law or other gross misconduct.The Speaker of the National Assembly will inform the Speaker of the Senate within two days if the National Assembly supports the proposed impeachment by at least two-thirds of its members.Within seven days of receipt of the resolution from the National Assembly, the Speaker of the Senate will convene a meeting of the Senate to hear the claims against the President. The Senate may then resolve to constitute a committee of at least eleven (11) of its members to investigate the charges and report to the whole Senate within ten days on whether the charges against the President have been proved or have no substance. The President would be entitled to be heard and or represented at the hearings of this committee .If the committee finds no substance in the charges, the matter will be concluded without further action. However, if the committee concludes that there is substance to the claims, the full Senate will accord the President a hearing and or representation before it and vote on the charges. The President will cease to hold office if at least two-thirds of the Senate vote to uphold any of the charges of impeachment.
NATIONAL
How to impeach a president in Kenya
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