David Ekwe Ethuro entered Kenya’s historical books when he was unanimously elected first Speaker of the modern Kenyan Senate, soon after the 2013 general elections.
Ethuro was unanimously chosen by members of the Jubilee coalition as their nominee for Speaker after former National Assembly Speaker Francis Ole Kaparo stepped down in his favor.
He managed 38 votes against Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD's) Farah Maalim who garnered 29 votes in the second round of voting.
In the first round of voting, Ethuro garnered 35 votes, which was less than the two-thirds needed for a win, while Maalim got 31 votes.
During his time as Senate Speaker, he made a number of rulings that endeared him to members of the public, while losing his support in the Jubilee Coalition.
In December 2016, he ordered police officers deployed to parliament to be withdrawn ahead of the debate on amendments to election law.
This was after senators mostly from the opposition, complained over the presence of police around parliament buildings, saying it was in breach of parliamentary privileges.
“The police were not brought to create fear in the way we carry out duties in the parliament. I am going to direct the police and tell them we do not need them…we don’t need them, they are not welcomed here,” he said.
“There was no cause for me to call for police action because the members of this house for the last four years have conducted themselves in a good manner. This is not a police state. We are a democratic country,” he added.
That ruling may have contributed to his political down fall. After the 2017 general elections, he lost his Senate Speaker position to former Bungoma Governor Ken Lusaka.
Lusaka was supported by the Jubilee Party leadership. Since then, the politician has been silent and many continue to guess what he is up to politically.
The 54-year-old served as MP Turkana Central between 1998 and 2013.