Kirinyaga Ann Waiguru.
NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 6 – The Supreme Court has dismissed a petition by Narc Kenya leader Martha Karua, challenging the election of Anne Mumbi Waiganjo (formely Ann Waiguru) as Kirinyaga governor.
Karua had moved to the Supreme Court after losing at the High Court and Court of Appeal where the case had been dismissed.
The ruling issued on Tuesday was read out by Justice Isaac Lenaola, for five judges who heard and determined the matter.
Justice Lenaola said that as a result, the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction in handling the matter and upheld the rulings of the two lower courts.
The ruling agreed with a High Court verdict that had described the procedures of filing the case as a nullity since the timeframe for filing the suit had been exhausted.
Justice Lenaola said that as a result, the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction in handling the matter.
“We must sympathize with the petitioner who, without any fault of her own, has been locked out of the seat of justice. We know the long time the process has taken, the huge financial resources that have been used by both parties,” he stated.
The judges thus ruled, “The final orders of the court, therefore, are as follows. The petition is hereby dismissed. The cost of the suit shall be borne by each party.”
The High Court in Kerugoya twice dismissed Karua’s case prompting her to move to the Court of Appeal where it was also thrown out.
Karua was challenging Mumbi’s victory over claims the election conducted by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) was not free and fair.
In her suit papers, Mumbi claimed that her agents were barred from accessing polling stations. She also cited allegations of bribery and canvassing, which she did not prove in court.
In her petition to the appellate court, Karua protested the ruling by the court in Kerugoya, saying it was not fair.
Speaking to journalists after the Tuesday ruling, Mumbi said she can now fully focus on effective service delivery following the Supreme Court ruling.
She also urged Karua to accept the judgment and move on.
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