Ruto asks court to strike out IEBC commissioners’ affidavits

President-Elect William Ruto now wants affidavits filed by the six commissioners of IEBC struck out from the Azimio La Umoja presidential election petition saying they are second-tier petitioners who solely want to prejudice his case.

Ruto through his Deputy Chief Agent Josephat Nanok argues that four of the six commissioners: Juliana Cherera, Francis Wanderi, Justus Nyang’aya and Irene Masit are at loggerheads with Chairperson Wafula Chebukati and therefore intend to use their response to advance accusations, new claims and innuendos solely intended to prejudice him.

Second tier

“The commissioners cannot be respondents under article 140 of the  Constitution and have been so named purely as second tier of Petitioners. In the true sense, the four commissioners are second tier Petitioners who are enjoined to enable the Petitioners to have another set of petitioners albeit classified as respondents,” argued Nanok in an affidavit.

Ruto through the law firm of Prof Kithure Kindiki, contends that the timeline to respond is for all respondents to file responses at the same time. Consequently, he will be denied any opportunity to answer the second-tier accusations made by the four commissioners.

“William Ruto’s right to a fair trial as conferred under Article 25 (c) will be irreversibly compromised. I pray this court be pleased to order that the six commissioners be struck off of this Petition and any pleadings filed by any of them be expunged from the record,” stated Nanok in the affidavit.

The immediate former Turkana Governor argues that the recent general election was held by IEBC and not individual Commissioners and it is therefore incomprehensible why the Azimio La Umoja presidential candidate Raila Odinga enjoined individual commissioners as respondents in their individual names in this petition.

It is Kenya Kwanza’s contention that Article 140 of the Constitution envisages a precise and concise issue that challenges the election of the President-Elect and Deputy President-Elect and complaints between commissioners should not be included in such a petition.

“I am aware that the four commissioners are uncomfortable with the electoral victory of President-Elect William Ruto: Indeed these commissioners have publicly stated their opposition to his victory and therefore they are in true sense petitioners and or proxies of the petitioners ingeniously included to be part of the respondents so as to compromise Ruto’s defence. Consequently, it is prudent that these unnecessary parties be struck out from this petition. In addition thereto, any pleadings filed by them should be expunged from the record,” he argued.

In  Raila’s election petition, he is capitalising on the division of the commissioners to seek the nullification of the presidential elections.

Azimio contends that before Chebukati’s declaration of the ‘final result’, four of the seven commissioners disowned the results.