Babu Owino named Embakasi East MP by force: IEBC Official
Embakasi East Paul Ongili Owino popularly known as Babu Owino. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
An election official has admitted that he announced Mr Paul Ongili Owino alias Babu Owino the winner of Embakasi East parliamentary election under duress.
Mr Nicholas Buttuk, a returning officer, said Mr Owino and his supporters caused chaos at the constituency tallying centre, making him to misplace Form 35C which he needed to fill and hand to the victor. The court, this week, heard that Mr Buttuk was forced to declare Mr Owino the winner without the document.
At the same time, another official admitted that there were errors in a number of forms for the constituency, but that cannot be the basis for scrutiny.
In reply to an application by Jubilee’s Francis Mureithi for scrutiny of the electoral materials, Mr Joseph Mele Eroo, the Nairobi County election manager, said that the petitioner had not laid a basis for the court to grant him the prayer.
Mr Eroo further said that lack of stamps in some of the statutory forms cannot be the basis for scrutiny in a poll petition.
Mr Mureithi asked for scrutiny of votes in 44 polling stations, most of them in Embakasi primary school.
Justice Joseph Sergo will give his judgment on February 5.
