Businessman Benard Waliuba (above) says Kasarani MP Ronald Karauri (below)should be recalled for non performance…Photos/File
NAIROBI, Kenya
A Kasarani businessman and politician has called for the recall of Constituency Member of Parliament Ronald Karauri, accusing him of being absent from the ground and failing to demonstrate tangible development despite significant public allocations.
Mtu Kazi Benard Waliuba on Wednesday questioned the MP’s visibility and challenged him to account for the use of constituency-linked public funds, including allocations estimated at about Ksh150 million annually under national affirmative and development frameworks.
“Our education system is wanting. The health sector is the same. Our security, lighting and roads are wanting,” Waliuba said. “We thought we had found a voice for the people when you presented yourself as a people’s leader with a calling for leadership. If you are engaged elsewhere and this calling needs to be visible through demonstration and collective responsibility in building our constituency, if not, should we exercise our power and recall you?”
Waliuba said constituents are asking what can be physically displayed to justify more than Ksh600 million received since 2023 through various national allocations directed to the constituency.
Public parliamentary records indicate that Karauri’s legislative footprint since 2023 has been limited, with few recorded interventions in plenary debates and no publicly documented private member’s bill sponsored in his name during the period under review.
His contributions in the House have largely centered on general policy discussions and budget matters.
Legal Framework on Recall
Article 104 of Kenya’s Constitution provides voters the right to recall a Member of Parliament before the end of the term.
However, the operationalization of that right remains complex.
Previous provisions in the Elections Act outlining the recall procedure were nullified by the High Court, creating a legislative gap.
As a result, there is currently no fully operational legal framework enabling voters to initiate and complete a recall process for MPs.
Under the earlier framework, recall could only be initiated after 24 months in office and not within 12 months of a general election, and it required a formal petition supported by a significant percentage of registered voters in the constituency, followed by verification by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission and a recall election.
To date, no Member of Parliament in Kenya has been successfully removed through recall.
The Kasarani MP has not publicly responded to the recall calls.
