Two Challenge Ex-Kieni MP Kanini Kega’s Loss in August Polls

The results of the parliamentary election have been contested in court by a voter and the chief agent of former Kieni MP Kanini Kega.

Voter Geoffrey Wahome and James Maina, a political operative supporting Kega, are requesting that the High Court declare the results invalid because they believe that the election process was flawed.

Through lawyer Musa Boaz, the duo has accused newly elected Kieni MP Anthony Wainaina of sabotaging their campaigns as they criticized the way the electoral agency conducted the elections, counted the votes, and delivered the results.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Kieni returning officer David Mbui and Mr Wainaina are listed as the first, second and third respondents, respectively.

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The petitioners allege that the results were rigged. In their suit, they have provided a list of eight wards where results were repeatedly cancelled or changed without the corresponding countersignature of IEBC officials.

For instance, they claim that details on form 35A at the voting station at Gakanga Primary School in Gatarakwa ward were altered to favor Mr Wainaina.

According to the document deposited in court, Stephen Muchire received 198 votes, however that number has since been adjusted to 3.

“On the same document, Mr Wainaina’s entry was changed to read 197 with the last digit having been evidently altered,” they allege.

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They contend that the presiding officer failed to countersign the document to demonstrate his approval of the revisions or to provide the legal justification for the changes.

The IEBC is also accused of permitting signature inconsistencies made by its representatives and those of political parties on forms 34A and 35A in different wards within the constituency.

Although some of the presiding officers’ signatures on forms 34A and 35A from five polling places do not match, they are allegedly signed by the same individuals, says Boaz.

A form 35A allegedly had only one political agent sign it and not the deputy presiding officer.

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They also cite inconsistencies in the number of registered voters who cast ballots for the president and members of the National Assembly at six polling stations.

They attribute this to ballot stuffing for the MP’s position, which led to a discrepancy between the total number of votes cast for the MP and those cast for the President.

“The total number of votes for the Member of National Assembly as captured in form 35A was 75,842 votes while that of the presidential was 73,462 creating a difference of 2,380 votes which cannot be accounted for,” court documents read.

Boaz uses the form 34A from the Mugunda Nairutia Youth Polytechnic polling station as an example, which recorded 408 registered voters, as opposed to form 35A, which recorded 401 registered voters.

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The electoral agency is also accused of electoral fraud. According to the petitioners, the constituency returning officer pinned election materials to provide voters with information at the polling stations.

They claim that Mr Wainaina’s name was marked in the voter education materials, giving him an unfair advantage, particularly among illiterate and undecided voters.

“Efforts to have this corrected was met with hostility [from] IEBC officials and political agents of the MP-elect,” they add.

According to the petitioners, Jubilee party agents were physically barred from entering more than 30 polling stations before voting began.

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The petitioners assert that at nine polling stations, an excessively high proportion of voters required help in order to cast their ballots.

“When our political agents complained about the irregularity, the presiding officers ejected them from the polling stations without justification only alleging interference,” court documents read.

The law permits voters who are illiterate or disabled to seek assistance.

Some IEBC clerks in the area, according to the petitioners, have allegedly since faced legal charges for election-related offenses.

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They claim that IEBC employees distributed extra ballots at some polling stations in an effort to boost voter turnout.

Mr Wainaina is accused of promising people money and pieces of land in exchange for their votes.

The incumbent is said to have allegedly collaborated with the IEBC to transfer voters from neighboring areas to Kieni so they could support him.

Additionally, he is accused of encouraging intimidation, violence, and property destruction during campaigns. He is apparently responsible for the damage of Kega’s billboards, and posters.

123 election petitions have thus far been filed in various courts across the country.