NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 1 – Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Lawyer Kamau Karori says chairman Wafula Chebukati is indeed recognized in the Constitution as the sole Presidential Returning officer.
Speaking before the Supreme Court Judges, Karori refuted claims by Paul Nyamodi that Chebukati was a self-declared Presidential Returning officer pointing out that the argument was meant to vilify him.
“Even this court recognize that is the role he plays. So, It is no him who styled himself that role but this Court says he is Constitutionally mandated under Article 138 (10) of the Constitution to declare the results of the presidential election and deliver a written notification of the results to the Chief Justice and the incumbent President,” Karori said.
While seeking to convince the Martha Koome led bench to dismiss the consolidated presidential petition, Karori indicated that the buck stops with the chairperson at the National Tallying Centre, in the process of receiving, tallying and verification of forms 34As as received from polling station to avoid human interference.
“Now you are being told that the commissioners need to be involved in the process of verifying and declaration of results. This introduces exactly what the court said that it does not want human intermeddling or intervention in the chain of results declaration. This ensures that there is no variance between the declared results and the transmitted ones,” said Karori.
On Wednesday, Nyamodi told the Supreme Court judges hearing a consolidated presidential petition seeking to nullify the victory handed to President-Elect William Ruto that there is no such position as National Presidential Returning Officer.
Nyamodi, who was representing Youth Advocacy Africa alongside Peter Kirika, faulted IEBC Chairperson Wafula Chebukati for tallying, verifying and declaring the winner in exclusion of four other commissioners.
“I hope that I will be able to persuade you that there is no such position of Presidential Returning Officer. It is a creation of the chairperson of the IEBC and it is created for the purposes of executing a very calculated scheme,” Nyamodi told the seven-judge bench led by Chief Justice Martha Koome.
The lawyer said the Chairman of the electoral commission has no such powers and accused him of violating the Elections Act and the Constitution.
“Be that as it may, the chairman is merely enabled to declare. The conduct of the election by dint of Article 138 (2) is by 290 returning officers,” he said.
In the consolidated petition led by Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Presidential flagbearer Raila Odinga which is seeking to overturn the victory of President Elect William Ruto , Odinga asked the court to nullify the August 9 election because the Commission had rigged it in favor of Ruto.
In his prayers, Odinga also submitted that Ruto had failed to attain the 50 percent plus one vote required by law.
Chebukati, on August 15, 2022, declared Ruto the President-Elect after garnering 7,176,141 (50.49 percent) votes against Odinga, who got 6,942,930 votes (48.85 percent).
After hearing submissions from all parties, the supreme court will issue its verdict by next week Monday.
