The High Court has dismissed a petition that sought to have National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula cited for contempt of court over his handling of the majority party determination in Parliament. In a ruling delivered on Friday, May 29, the court found that the petitioners, led by Kenneth Njagi Njiru, failed to prove that Wetang’ula willfully disobeyed its earlier judgment issued on February 7, 2025. The...

The High Court has dismissed a petition that sought to have National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula cited for contempt of court over his handling of the majority party determination in Parliament. In a ruling delivered on Friday, May 29, the court found that the petitioners, led by Kenneth Njagi Njiru, failed to prove that Wetang’ula willfully disobeyed its earlier judgment issued on February 7, 2025. The court also rejected requests to declare the Speaker unfit for office over the disputed ruling. The case arose from Wetang’ula’s decision to designate the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party as the minority side in the National Assembly, a move the petitioners argued violated the court’s earlier findings. However, the judges ruled that there was no evidence of deliberate defiance, noting that contempt of court requires clear proof of knowledge, breach, and intentional disobedience. The court further held that its February judgment was largely declaratory in nature, meaning it clarified the law without compelling specific actions by the Speaker. It also dismissed attempts to block Wetang’ula from performing his duties or invalidate parliamentary proceedings conducted after the ruling, stating that such arguments went beyond the scope of the original case. The bench added that several appeals had already been filed against the February judgment, making a review through contempt proceedings inappropriate. Ultimately, the court concluded that the application lacked merit and ordered each party to bear its own costs.