EX-Muhoroni legislator Ayiecho Olweny seeks to nullify MP's win

Former Muhoroni MP Ayiecho Olweny wants the Supreme Court to uphold the High Court decision which had nullified the nomination of the current MP James Onyango K'Oyoo during last year’s ODM party primaries, and ordered that he be issued with the nomination certificate.

He argues that the Court of Appeal gave Mr K'Oyoo, undue advantage over him when they relied on a judgment allegedly rendered by the ODM’s National Appeals Tribunal (NAT), to overturn the High Court judgment issued in his favour.

The former education assistant minister, in court papers, argues that while the matter was pending before the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal (PPDT), the ODM’s NAT legal officer, had through an affidavit dated May 7, 2017 explained that they had not been able to deliver a ruling in relation to the Muhoroni party primaries, but would do so later.

AFFIDAVIT

“In a strange turn of events, Mr Koyoo, who was also a litigant in the complaint before the PPDT filed an affidavit a day after the affidavit by the ODM’s NAT legal officer, and curiously attached a copy of what looked like a judgment from the NAT. Curiously, the judgment was dated May 5, 2017 and was not signed by all adjudicators of the NAT,” Professor Olweny in court papers.

High Court Judge Jessie Lessit, while allowing the case by Professor Olweny challenging the Muhoroni party nominations, had said that it was clear to the court that ODM’s NAT had not delivered a judgment, and hence party did not own the judgment which had been produced by Mr K'Oyoo.

“In a strange turn of events, and in a manner that defies the established legal principles, the court of appeal relied on this same “judgment” of the NAT to overturn the decision of the high court,” Professor Olweny in court papers.

VERDICT

He also aggrieved that the appellate judges extensively relied on it without questioning its authenticity in light of the admission by the NAT that it was yet to render a verdict in this regard. Further that the court of appeal did not even interrogate the authenticity of the signatures that had allegedly been appended by the three NAT members.

Justice Lessit had declared Professor Olweny the validly elected candidate for the Muhoroni seat during the ODM primaries held in April 25, 2017, and directed the party to issue him with a nomination certificate then forward his name to Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) as its valid candidate for Muhoroni parliamentary seat.

NOMINATION

The judge added that in case ODM declines to furnish Prof Olweny with a certificate, the judgment and the orders made therein shall be supplied to IEBC to serve as his nomination and gazettement as the candidate for the Muhoroni Parliamentary seat.

At the same time, the judge had convicted the chairperson of the ODM elections board Judith Pareno for contempt after failing to tabulate the results for five wards during the party primaries.

The case will be heard on Thursday, April 26.