•This Facade Threatens to Undermine UDA and Plunge Northern Kenya into Chaos
In the heart of Isiolo County, a dangerous political farce is unfolding. The impeachment of Governor Abdi Ibrahim Hassan Guyo isn’t governance—it’s a coup. A treacherous, coordinated attack by United Democratic Movement (UDM) operatives with one mission: to dismantle UDA’s only stronghold in Northern Kenya and seize power through unconstitutional means.
This is not oversight. This is betrayal.
In the dust-blown corridors of Isiolo County, a dangerous political charade is unfolding — one that reeks of betrayal, undermines the constitutional order, and threatens to destabilize the fragile peace of Northern Kenya.
The impeachment of Governor Abdi Ibrahim Hassan Guyo is not simply an attack on a county executive; it is a calculated, cold-blooded political assassination — the modern-day equivalent of Julius Caesar’s stabbing on the Ides of March.
But this time, the daggers are not held by Roman senators, but by scheming United Democratic Movement (UDM) operatives with an insatiable hunger for power and revenge.
This spectacle is not about law. It is not about governance. It is about conquest. A sinister vendetta to bring down UDA’s only bastion in Northern Kenya, executed by political opportunists masquerading as reformists.
A Death Sentence for a Traffic Ticket
Let us be clear: the allegations leveled against Governor Guyo are pathetically thin — a tragicomic collection of bureaucratic technicalities dressed up as constitutional violations. Failing to deliver a county address on time? Employing too many advisors? Making disparaging remarks against a senator? These are misdemeanors at best, administrative blips that do not amount to gross misconduct under any reasonable interpretation of the law.
To deploy the full weight of impeachment — the constitutional equivalent of political capital punishment — over such trivialities is not justice; it is judicial lynching. It is sentencing a man to death by guillotine for a speeding ticket.
Yet even that flimsy process was unlawfully advanced. The Meru High Court explicitly barred the Isiolo County Assembly from proceeding with the impeachment. The defiance of this conservatory order renders the process not just illegitimate, but entirely void ab initio. To then watch the Senate convene a special sitting, in flagrant disregard of the judiciary, is to witness the slow erosion of the rule of law in real time.
UDM: Wolves in Kenya Kwanza Clothing
The fingerprints of sabotage lead straight to the gates of UDM — a party whose recent actions expose it not as an ally within Kenya Kwanza, but as a traitorous faction determined to fracture the coalition from within. At the center of this betrayal are two men: Marsabit Governor Mohamud Ali (alias Abshiro) and Mandera Senator Ali Roba — UDM’s political godfathers, now accused of engineering this coup to settle scores and consolidate regional dominance.
This is the same Abshiro who was once arrested for failing to account for Ksh 8.2 billion — a damning stain on any leader’s credibility. And Roba, a man whose long tenure as Mandera governor left the county mired in insecurity, poor infrastructure, and the ominous shadow of al-Shabaab. What moral authority do these two failed leaders possess to sit in judgment of Governor Guyo — a man who, in barely two years, has delivered tangible development, stabilized a volatile region, and become the face of progress in Northern Kenya?
Their motive? Revenge for Guyo’s 2023 defection from Jubilee to UDA. His decision to align Isiolo with President William Ruto’s national development agenda infuriated UDM, which had secured a majority in the County Assembly by masquerading as a “homegrown” outfit. Guyo’s strategic realignment stripped UDM of its regional grip and exposed its hollow promises.
What we’re witnessing is not accountability; it is retribution. A bitter, calculated response to political defiance.
The Great Hypocrisy: When the Accusers Are Worse Than the Accused
This entire farce is being prosecuted by some of the most compromised political actors in the region. The motion was moved by Sericho MCA Abubakar Godana — from the very ward that recently received its 52nd borehole under Guyo’s leadership — and seconded by Charri MCA Meja Galgalo, a man facing ongoing narcotics-related charges.
Unverified but widespread allegations point to MCAs receiving Ksh 4 million bribes to support the motion. Eyewitnesses saw the lead plotters celebrating in a lavish beachfront hotel, joined by Abdirahman Affey — reportedly the “next” deputy governor in a prearranged coup. Even the alleged kidnapping of Affey was later debunked as a poorly executed political theater.
And what of the impeachment session itself? The Clerk of the Assembly denied it ever took place, and no official footage has been released — a blatant violation of transparency. Is this the new standard for impeachment in Kenya? Secretive, lawless, bribery-fueled stabs in the back?
A Staged Coup Dressed in Ethnic Cloaks
The ethnic engineering of the Assembly is another red flag. Of the eight nominated MCAs, seven are women from clans loyal to Roba and Abshiro, with most reportedly securing their nominations through illicit financial deals. This is not representation. This is ethnic weaponization and auctioning of democracy to the highest bidder.
Such manipulative clan-based politics is disturbingly reminiscent of the old Northern People’s Progressive Party — the same secessionist movement that fueled the Shifta War in the 1960s. Once again, we are staring into the abyss of dangerous tribal politics cloaked in modern suits and constitutional jargon.
Governor Guyo: The Man They Fear, The Progress They Envy
Why such urgency to remove Guyo? Because he represents competence. Stability. Vision. He is a threat not because he has failed, but because he has succeeded.
Under his watch, ethnic clashes have plummeted. Infrastructure projects have sprung up across Isiolo — from the modern stadium and county headquarters to water projects and modern abattoirs. Peace, once a rare commodity in the region, is now a reality. And Guyo did all this not by favoritism or fearmongering, but through pragmatic leadership and inclusive governance.
Compare that with UDM’s record in Marsabit and Mandera — counties haunted by banditry, cross-border abductions, and gross underdevelopment. UDM’s legacy in those counties is not peace or prosperity. It is paralysis.
Betrayal at the Heart of Kenya Kwanza
This impeachment is not just an attack on one man. It is an open revolt against President Ruto’s UDA and a destabilizing act within the Kenya Kwanza Alliance. Governor Guyo is UDA’s only governor in the North. Toppling him would hand the region back to a rogue party with no developmental blueprint — just greed, grievance, and ghost projects.
Even more critically, this turmoil risks sabotaging flagship government projects like the Isiolo-Mandera highway — a vital artery for national unity and regional trade. UDM’s actions are more than just political treachery; they are a harbinger of regional instability. They endanger the entire Northern Frontier.
Senate Must Choose: Law or Lawlessness
On July 8 and 9, the Senate must decide whether to rubber-stamp this unconstitutional ambush or rise to defend the spirit of devolution. Governor Guyo, represented by Eric Theuri and Elias Mutuma, deserves a fair hearing and a legal resolution — not a kangaroo court guided by vendettas.
This is not just a legal test; it is a moral one. If the Senate validates this impeachment, it will embolden every disgruntled faction across Kenya to stage similar coups. Devolution itself will be at risk.
Not for Sale, Not for Surrender
Isiolo is not for auction. Its people are not pawns in Roba and Abshiro’s twisted chess game. Governor Guyo is not perfect — no leader is — but he is guilty of no impeachable offense. He is being punished not for failure, but for succeeding where others faltered.
This entire saga is a harrowing reminder of Lord Acton’s maxim: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” UDM has corrupted its mandate. It has betrayed its allies. It now seeks to destroy what it cannot control.
The Senate must reject this farce. President Ruto must speak out against this betrayal. And the people of Isiolo must remain resolute.
In the words of Cicero, “The good of the people is the highest law.” Let the guillotines be returned to the shadows, and let justice — not vengeance — prevail.
Fiat justitia, ruat caelum — let justice be done, though the heavens fall.
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