By Mujidu Victor
Mike Mbuvi Sonko will move to High Court Today after the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Disputes Resolution Tribunal upheld a decision by the Mombasa Returning Officer (RO) disqualifying him from the gubernatorial race.
He will be seeking orders to quash the commission’s decision not to clear him to vie for the Mombasa gubernatorial seat.
The Mombasa RO rejected Sonko’s documents on three grounds; failure to present original certificates, failure to present a certified copy of the certificate, and breach of section 75 of the constitution.
Former Nairobi Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko has been disqualified to contest for Mombasa County gubernatorial race.
The IEBC’s Dispute Resolution Committee disqualified Sonko on grounds that he failed to present an original degree certificate, breaching article 75 of the Kenyan Constitution as well as failure to present certified copies of the degree certificate from the relevant institution as a key requirement by the IEBC for clearance.
The Committee issued the ruling at Milimani Law Courts on its last day of hearing and determining complaints filed by aspirants.
“He may be cleared in 2017 but that doesn’t take away the requirement for the 2022 polls where IEBC is supposed to verify the degree certificate. Nothing has been placed to show that other aspirants weren’t asked to prove academic qualification hence there is no discrimination,” the Committee ruled.
IEBC returning officer Swalaha Yusuf stated that Sonko does not comply with Chapter Six of the Constitution on leadership and integrity following his December 2020 impeachment by the Nairobi City County Assembly members.
She said Sonko had no court orders to compel IEBC to clear him as reported by a section of the media.
Regarding the fact that Sonko was impeached by the Senate of Kenya followed by a gazette notice of December 18, 2020, the committee cited that he was disqualified from holding any public office which was one of the grounds for not clearing him to contest in the August general election by IEBC.
The team of advocates representing Sonko and the Wiper party led by veteran Lawyer John Khaminwa, Wilfred Nyamu, and Makueni MP Dan Maanzo among other lawyers expressed shock regarding the ruling made by the Committee, stating that it was unfair and denying the rights to Mombasa people.
“We did not expect such an outcome from this committee since we believed it would be fair to our client, we will be moving to the High Court in the morning to challenge this decision in order to ensure that the people of Mombasa are able to elect the Governor that they want,” said Khaminwa.
The advocate Wilfred Nyamu turned radicle against the committee demanding a copy of Sonko’s judgment with Wambua telling him to wait for it till tomorrow since the document demanded some rectifications due to errors.
However, Wambua vowed not to leave the premises without the document stating that they were aware of the ruling made 10 hours earlier and that they demanded a copy to rush to the high court before they are told they are late in filing an appeal.
The former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko arrived at the Milimani law court a few minutes past 10 Pm as the Committee hit its 10th day hearing of 262 complaints starting from the members of County Assemblies to the Presidential Candidates countrywide, Sonko terming the judgment as unfair and predetermined.
” We knew something fishy was going on when the IEBC Disputes Resolution Committee kept shifting the ruling on this matter from Saturday to Sunday and Monday where we have been kept waiting for 10 hours only for the judgment to be delivered at night,” said Sonko.
Makueni member of parliament Daniel Maanzo said that the Wiper Party will pursue the matter for eternity till Sonko gets cleared to vie for Mombasa Gubernatorial seat considering the grounds that his Mombasa supporters were fully equipped to vote for him as their next governor.
Some of Sonko’s women supporters allegedly to be ferried from Mombasa to Nairobi for the Committee judgment decried after the ruling stands unfavourable to their candidate. The women attributed that the former Nairobi governor has supported many coastal people and that he deserves to be elected for the interest of the common mwananchi.
Meanwhile, the Committee has also ruled that Wiper Party has the right to nominate another Mombasa governorship candidate within 72 hours for possible clearance.
