Isiolo County Assembly Clerk Salad Guracha has been reinstated after the High Court temporarily suspended his removal from office, dealing a blow to Speaker Mohammed Koto and the Assembly Service Board, who had sent him on compulsory leave.

Justice Onesmus Makau of the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nyeri ruled in favour of Gurcha on Tuesday, issuing conservatory orders to halt the suspension until his petition is fully heard and determined.

The judge faulted the Speaker and the Board for failing to follow proper procedures in taking disciplinary action against the Clerk.

“An order be and is hereby granted, temporarily suspending the respondent’s decision to place the applicant on compulsory leave,” said Justice Makau, adding that the Board had not sat to initiate a proper disciplinary process.

Gurcha was suspended on June 16, 2025, over claims of financial misconduct, absenteeism, and failure to submit monthly requisitions for April and May to the Controller of Budget. He was also accused of poor coordination of management meetings.

But in his court filing, Gurcha rejected the allegations and described the suspension as unlawful and politically motivated.

He claimed that Speaker Koto and the Board acted maliciously to punish him for refusing to support a planned impeachment against the Isiolo Governor.

“The 1st respondent is part of a larger scheme to impeach the Governor of Isiolo County, and the petitioner was expected to act contrary to his statutory duties and facilitate the unlawful process,” court documents stated.

Gurcha argued that the move violated his right to fair labour practices as guaranteed under Article 41 of the Constitution. The court agreed that his case deserved protection in the interim.

“An order be and is hereby granted, restraining the Respondents… from ejecting, blocking, denying access into the office and/or otherwise impeding the Petitioner/Applicant from discharging the functions of the Office of Clerk-Isiolo County, pending the hearing and determination of the petition,” the judge ruled.

The Speaker and the Board defended their decision, saying Gurcha had been warned several times, including through letters issued in 2022 and March 2025.

They told the court the suspension was part of a disciplinary process that had only just begun and no decision had been made to terminate his employment.

“They aver that the petitioner is using the court process to shield himself from the disciplinary process since the disciplinary process has just started and no decision has been made to terminate his employment. They aver that evidence of any threat of replacing the petitioner has been adduced,” Justice Makau said.

Despite these claims, the judge found that the petitioner had raised valid concerns that required the court’s protection, noting that the matter involved public interest and could be undermined without interim relief.