NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug, 25 – Kenyans have been urged to keep off the premises of the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi county amid proceedings for the presidential election petition.
The judiciary said the courts will be out of bounds starting Friday.
The ample space at the Milimani Law Courts is said to be the reason the judiciary shifted based for this petition from the Supreme Court of Kenya buildings.
All fresh pleas and certificates of urgency will be filed and handled at City Court. Meanwhile, all matters scheduled for this period will be mentioned virtually for direction by the respective courts during the period.
“Take further notice that all fresh pleas and certificate of urgency will be filed and handled at City Court. All matters scheduled for this period will be mentioned virtually for directions by the respective courts during the period,” said the Judiciary.
As part of enhancing security at the premises, a contingent of police officers has already been deployed to the courts.
Azimio La Umoja -One Kenya Alliance presidential candidate Raila Odinga Monday filed a petition at the country’s Apex court, the Supreme Court, challenging the outcome of the August, 9, presidential results.
Odinga through his lawyers has promised ‘a mother of all legal battles’ in the quest for justice. The veteran politician alongside his team presented physical copies of the petition in court as his legal team says that they had also filed an online copy earlier in the day.
It is alleged that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) failed to tally at least 140,000 votes and as such William Ruto who was declared president-elect did not meet the threshold required by the law of 50 per cent plus one of the valid votes cast to be declared the victor.
If the case is declared in favor of the Odinga-led team in 14 days then the country will have to brace itself for a repeat poll in 60 days.
“The actions we have taken are perfectly in line with the stipulations of our constitution on resolving electoral disputes. It affirms our deep belief in constitutionalism, rule of law, and a peaceful resolution of disputes including high sake ones like the presidential elections,”
“We have been shocked that as we prepare to go to court, others tried to stop us. Kenyans and all of us who followed our campaign will recall that fighting and ending corruption in Kenya was our core agenda throughout our campaigns as Azimio La Umoja -One Kenya Coalition party,” said Odinga.
The verdant political said that the presidential elections represented the country’s continued struggle in the fight against corruption while striving to preserve our democratic values.
“The presidential election results announced last week, represent that continued struggle pitting the forces for democracy and good governance against the corruption cartels that are so determined that they will stop at nothing to take control of the government and this country,”
He further said that the legal petition was a ‘do or die battle against corruption cartels who have everything to lose.
“The corruption cartels are prepared to compromise electoral systems, bribe electoral officials, make security systems look the other way, or even kill in order to find their way to power and their ill-gotten wealth and coin stealing from the public. We believe this is what happened in this election. For the sake of Kenya’s future, the corruption network must not only be stopped it must also be crashed,” said Odinga.
Attempts by such individuals to make over the country are not new according to Odinga who further accused them of men financing corrupt leaders who will ultimately serve them and protect their interest.
The former premier said that the cartels have steadily been manipulating electoral systems and suppressing the participation of voters who support rival political formations.
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