The High court has thrown out nine petitions which sought to bar candidates with integrity questions from contesting the August 9 polls.
A three-judge bench ruled that the petitions which targeted former Nairobi governor Miko Sonko, Paul Thang’wa and Samuel Arama were filed prematurely and ought to have first been resolved at the IEBC Dispute Resolution Committee.
This means Sonko remains barred from vying for the Mombasa governor position after IEBC threw out his candidature.
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“The net effect of this decision is that pre-election disputes such as those regarding suitability and eligibility for the nomination of candidates must be resolved by the IEBC in the first instance. The High Court’s jurisdiction is only triggered once the IEBC makes a decision on the issue,” Justices David Majanja, Chacha Mwita and Mugure Thande ruled.
According to the Judges, the Supreme Court had emphasized that the issue of the suitability of a candidate ought to be brought before the IEBC in the first instance and pursued from there.
“We find and hold that petitions relating to the nomination process concerning Mike Sonko, Paul Thang’wa and Samuel Arama are premature. We, therefore, decline jurisdiction,” they ruled.
The judges noted that IEBC Dispute Resolution Committee process was invoked and it must be allowed to run its course and the jurisdiction of the court should not be invoked until that process is exhausted.
