On Thursday, Wajir Woman Representative Fatuma Gedi was left nursing injuries at The Karen Hospital after Wajir East MP Rashid Kassim slapped her.
Gedi said Kassim confronted her at the parliament buildings parking lot and demanded to know why the Woman Rep, who sits in the Budget Committee, had not pushed for allocation of funds to Wajir East.
The confrontation got heated and Kassim slapped the Woman Rep as fellow politicians and other witnesses watched.
The Wajir Woman Rep was later taken to Karen Hospital for first aid treatment before recording the matter at Parliament Police Station - OB 20/13/6/2019.
The attack has become the talk of the town and was even a topic of conversation on the Maina and King’ang’i show on Friday Morning.
Sadly this is not the first time female politicians have been assaulted by their male colleagues.
Here are some other incidences that grabbed headlines across the country:
- Shebesh slapped by Kidero
In September 2013, former Nairobi Women rep Rachel Shebesh stormed Governor Evans Kidero’s office at City Hall. A heated verbal exchange ensued and quickly turned physical after Kidero started wagging his finger at her before dispensing a slap. The altercation was captured on video and widely circulated on social media.
“Ayaaayaaa! Kidero, you have slapped me?! You have slapped me Kidero? You have slapped me?” an angry Shebesh cried out in the video as Kidero retreated into his office.
It was said that during the clash, Shebesh pinched Kidero’s nose and kicked his ankles but the incident was not captured on camera.
- Nyeri MCA punched by Mweiga MCA
A year ago, Mweiga MCA Njuguna Kawanjiku was accused of punching his college Beth Nyawira at the County Chambers before taking off.
Nyawira was punched following a disagreement over committee positions in the Nyeri County Assembly and before fleeing the crime scene, Njuguna is said to have threatened journalists against reporting on the incident.
3. Kisii Ward representative Vs Moticho MCA
On November 13th 2018, Jane Justin a Kisii ward representative claimed that Moticho MCA Evans Mokoro slapped her in front of their colleagues.
Ms Jane claimed that in addition to the slap, Mr Mokoro had been sexually harassing her with lewd videos.
“Had it not been for the intervention of the sergeant at arms, I could be in hospital today,” The ODM nominated ward rep told Nation Newspaper after the assault.
Away from slapping colleagues, Evans Mokoro was recently charged with defiling a 16-year-old girl between June 2016 and September 2017 in Nyamarambe area, Gucha South.
- Millie Odhiambo and Moses Kuria
Things got ugly during the passing of the Security Laws Bill 5 years ago resulting to an attack on Suba North MP Millie Odhiambo. Millie who served as the MP of Mvita Constituency at the time of the incident claimed that she was punched by her college Moses Kuria. Allegations that Moses Kuria denied but in a March 2019 interview Millie reiterated that Moses Kuria assaulted her.
“The public has the culture of mob justice and I like the person that asked me what happened during the amendment of the security law. What were you told? Millie undressed when what actually happened I was beaten by men and undressed by men but what did people believe, that I undressed myself. Do you believe I undressed? I was beaten and you know Millie is kichwa ngumu. They were stopping us from reaching the speaker who was somewhere like you. So when we’re coming from here Jubilee were more than us. So none of us could reach the speaker. So when we went at the front walinitwanga kabisa, Moses Kuria alinitwanga hapa (points the forehead) thoroughly but I said hata kama amenigonga I must still reach the speaker,” she said during the Wicked Edition.