Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition has made good on its promise to file a petition challenging the 2022 presidential election results.
Twenty minutes to 1 pm Monday, a white Isuzu FRR truck waded through a congested Ngong Road in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, as it softly nudged crowds of supporters.
The throngs of chanting and clatters of glee lined the sides and in front of the evidence-laden truck as it found its way into the Milimani Law Courts– a now GSU squad-packed court that in the next fortnight will be the temporal residence of the Supreme Court of Kenya.
Here, Raila Odinga, the presidential flag bearer of the Azimio camp in the August 9th polls, filed a petition against Wafula Chebukati– the chairman of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC); and William Ruto– the President-elect. In total the petition names 9 respondents, including all IEBC commissioners.
The petition seeks more than 20 items of relief from the Supreme Court, including barring IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati from presiding over the elections and conducting a forensic audit of the Kenya Integrated Elections Management System (KIEMS) kits. Odinga and Karua have also asked to inspect the IEBC portal and the presidential election forms, including Forms 34A, 34B, and 34C.
“This is a do-or-die battle for the corruption cartels, who have everything to lose if the forces of democracy take over. The corruption cartels are prepared to compromise election systems, bribe electoral officials, make security systems look the other way, or even kill in order to find their way to power.” — RAILA ODINGA
Requested to scrutinize spoiled votes and asked the court to have them included in the final count.
Odinga said they have enough evidence to show they won the election, and witnesses have come forward telling them how the election was compromised.
“We have been shocked that as we prepared to go to court, others tried to stop us,” Odinga alleged without naming the parties who tried to stop them.
He described the election as a war between the forces of good governance and corruption cartels, whom he warned are poised to rip the country apart if given power.
ALSO READ: IEBC DECLARES WILLIAM RUTO PRESIDENT-ELECT, SOME COMMISSIONERS OBJECT TO THE RESULTS
“This is a do-or-die battle for the corruption cartels, who have everything to lose if the forces of democracy take over,” Odinga said. “The corruption cartels are prepared to compromise election systems, bribe electoral officials, make security systems look the other way, or even kill in order to find their way to power.”
Without naming Ruto, Odinga said his side, which he described as the corruption cartel, would give free rein to their supporters involved in the illegal drug trade and give them government protection and access to intelligence.
Odinga and his Azimio brigade streamed into the court premises at around 1250 pm, amidst jubilation from their proponents, turning the court into a near fever pitch football frenzy. High-end technological gadgets: cameras, smartphones, and tablets sprung to life and were lifted in the air to capture a moment in time– as Odinga, his running mate Martha Karua, and Kalonzo Musyoka– the Azimio trio lifted a carton of evidence onto a table.
When they walked out of the court premises, another case had been filed, bringing the number of lawsuits seeking to battle the presidency from Ruto to at least five.
Outside the court, lawyer James Orengo – the governor-elect for Siaya County and a high-profile legal mind in Kenya, spoke to journalists gathered at the court.
“With the nature of the case we have filed here, we are confident that the court will rule in our favor,” Orengo said.
The two-time senator said they wanted the court to order the retallying of forms 34As and 34Bs, “but minus Chebukati.”
He said Azimio is asking the court to quash the results declared by Chebukati on August 15th, announcing Ruto, the winner. Orengo, who will no doubt play a leading role in the Odinga case, accused Chebukati of being a dictatorial chairperson who bungled the elections and “corrupted the electoral technology to favor Ruto.”
Two hours later, a calm and firm Odinga addressed the press at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), leading a verbal assault on Chebukati and Ruto for what he said was the suppression of democracy and jeopardizing a nation.
“No nation once captured by cartels ever thrives. We refused to go in that direction. It must not happen,” RAILA ODINGA.
Odinga said his team believes in the rule of law and constitutionalism, perhaps a perfect justification for filing the petition at the apex court. Without giving details, Odinga said that some people tried to stop them from going to the Supreme Court to file the petition.
In his statement, the former Prime Minister and opposition doyen accused IEBC of enabling massive illegalities in the August 9th polls. Further, Odinga accused the Ruto team of corruption and said they must be stopped lest they tear the country apart.
“They are trying to turn Kenya into a one-party state. They have bought elected leaders in just a week in an effort to kill our democracy. This should not be underestimated,” Odinga said of Ruto.
Furthermore, the Azimio One-Kenya captain warned that if Ruto took over the government, corruption, money laundering, and drug trafficking would be the order of the day.
“No nation once captured by cartels ever thrives. We refused to go in that direction. It must not happen,” Odinga said.
In addition, he called upon all Kenyans to stop the election cartels from getting into the heart of Kenya– the presidency, “otherwise we will have no country.”
The ODM party leader asked Kenyans to ‘walk the talk’ in the fight against corruption, even as he attacked the IEBC further. He said they have evidence that it is them who won the election, not Ruto.
“Bomas of Kenya (the national tallying center) was full of thieves who were changing results as they came in,” he offered.
He also condemned Chebukati for announcing the presidential election results even before tallying results from31 constituencies.
Regardless, Odinga exuded optimism that the truth would be known soon and urged the international community to let Kenya handle her issues without interference.
Besides Odinga, several other parties have also filed a petition opposing Ruto’s election. They include two members of the public, a youth group, the Kenya Universities Students Council, Reuben Kigame, the presidential aspirant who IEBC barred from contesting the top seat, and human rights activist Okiya Omtatah.
Kigame, a visually-challenged evangelist, is asking the court to order fresh elections. He argued that the IEBC violated the constitution by preventing independent candidates like him from vying. Kigame also wants Chebukati removed as the chairperson of the electoral commission.
The Kenya Universities Students Council argues that irregularities marred the election. Anthony Manyara, the council’s leader, said the polls were tarnished by qualitative, quantitative, and fraud illegalities.
“We had over a thousand observers across the country, and they have evidence of these things,” Manyara told the media on Monday.
In the next 14 days, the seven-judge Supreme Court bench will hear and determine the cases filed.
The verdict could take Kenyans back to the polls in two months or order a recount of the votes to determine a clear winner. If Ruto prevails, the judgment will clear the way for his swearing-in as the 5th President of Kenya.