NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept, 2 – On August 15, 2022, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairperson Wafula Chebukati declared United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate William Ruto president-elect.
Minutes earlier, chaos broke out at the Bomas of Kenya, which doubled up as the National Tallying Center. Police were quickly called into action in order to restore sanity as the country waited with bated breath to learn who the fifth president would be.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court raised pertinent questions to several counsels of the respondents as the hearing of the presidential election petition 2022 intensified.
The Vice President of the Supreme Court Justice Philomena Mwilu asked the respondents’ lawyers several questions regarding the role of the commissioners and most noticeably, what transpired on August, 15,2022 as four breakaway commissioners of the poll body held a press conference at the Serena Hotel, refusing to take responsibility of the outcome of the presidential election results.
The Vice-chairperson of the IEBC Juliana Cherera infamously termed the process as Opaque saying that they were not involved in the final verification process.
“The walking away of the four commissioners to go and hold…was it an IEBC meeting at Serena…or was IEBC meeting at Bomas. Comment on the walking away of the four commissions almost at the same time the chair was about to declare the results,” posed Mwilu.
Mwilu said that she too was glued to her TV set following the proceedings.
“Among their first world was, that we have done an excellent job as concerns this election but the results than the chairman is about to release are his results…so please comment on my benefit, that walking out and how was it timed? because you have got to know because these are your clients,”
She further noted that were it not for the chaos witnessed at the Bomas of Kenya, the two split group would have made their address to the nation at the same time.
“I thought the team at Serena would give us their numbers and The one at Bomas theirs,” she said.
Considering elections were postponed in Kakamega and Mombasa for the gubernatorial contest as well as in several constituencies, Mwilu sought to know whether it affected the voter turnout for the presidential elections since the polls went on.
“Did the postponement affect only the vote of the president and since we are in the habit of taking judicial notice and I am in a position of taking judicial notice of the fact that elections have since happened in the postponed areas. Have the subsequent actions returned a different result as to turn out?”
She noted that numbers were important in any election though the court still needed to know whether the turnout affected the presidential elections.
In order to uphold transparency and accountability, Mwilu also inquired about the role of agents specifically in areas where agents are said to have not been present. the court was informed that in parts of Tiaty constituency in Baringo county there were no agents and as such did IEBC ensure the process was carried out in a fair manner.
“Where agents are not present at an election, is it not the role of IEBC to ensure Article 81 (E) is upheld ?”
On the role of the commissioners, Mwilu asked whether they were allowed to take positions or be neutral.
“We have seen affidavits they have sworn which tend to show that they take certain positions, what is the position to be taken by a commissioner? Is it a position of the party, any party or is it a neutral position of the IEBC?”
She posed what the court should do since commissioners in this petition have nearly taken a position on the outcome of the elections.
The role of commissioners in the IEBC also featured prominently with the court seeking specific answers amid claims commissioners were assigned different roles by the chairperson.
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