Raila takes on Uhuru over Supreme Court attacks

National Super Alliance leader Raila Odinga addresses the media at Okoa Kenya offices, Nairobi, on September 22, 2017. He said the Supreme Court ruling was legal. PHOTO | SALATON NJAU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Raila emphasised that Nasa is ready for the repeat election, but only if the commission meets their demands.

National Super Alliance leader Raila Odinga has asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to desist from attacking the Judiciary over the nullification of his August 8 win.

Mr Odinga also dismissed his October 26 presidential poll rival's claim that the Supreme Court ruling on the presidential petition was a 'judicial coup'.

"The court overturned the coup engineered by the commission that gave Mr Kenyatta a fake win in the presidential race. Courts do their work within the law," he said, warning the President that he could plunge the country in conflict.

"President Kenyatta must respect the Supreme Court and should hence desist from telling them how they should discharge their mandate," Mr Odinga said during a press briefing at the Okoa Kenya offices on Friday.

DAVID MARAGA
President Kenyatta accused the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice David Maraga of subverting the will of those who voted on August 8 by failing to consider all the evidence adduced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission during the hearing.

"The presidential election was not nullified on the assumption that there were irregularities in the election result forms.

"It is now manifestly clear that despite the fact that relevant forms had already been deposited in court by IEBC, no proper scrutiny or verification ever took place, which would have otherwise brought the court to the inescapable conclusion that the August 8 election result was indeed valid," he said.

REFORMS

Mr Odinga further laughed off the President’s assertion on Thursday that the number of votes he obtained in the previous election remain unchallenged.

"The numbers President Kenyatta is harping on are product of theft and the court had no reason to look into such numbers. Kenya must be governed by the rule of law."

He emphasised that Nasa is ready for the repeat election, but only if the commission meets their demands.

Among others, the coalition wants human resource changes, reforms on technology for election, identification of a new printer for the ballot papers as well as operational and logistical reforms.