A notice of appointment and pleadings submitted by attorneys for the four dissenting commissioners at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission were dismissed by the Supreme Court (IEBC).
After the matter came up during the pre-trial conference, Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu said in her ruling that the court would not become involved in the internal quarrel of the commission.
“We have taken into account each pleading submitted by the parties. We cannot, however, resolve internal disagreements on the commission’s legal representation in court. Who represents the IEBC is not a matter for the court to decide. This internal problem has an internal solution. This dispute cannot be brought before the court, DCJ Mwilu declared.
As a result, the court dismisses Issa Mansur’s notice of applications and pleadings (lawyer representing the four commissioners). Paul Muite and Issa Mansur are available for the four commissioners to use as needed in this case, she added.
The four candidates, Irene Masit, Justus Nyang’aya, Francis Wanderi, and Juliana Cherera, distanced themselves from the IEBC’s presidential election results, which were declared by Wafula Chebukati, citing “opaqueness” in the final tally.
The question of the four commissioners’ representation was brought up by the IEBC and Wafula Chebukati’s attorneys at the pre-trial hearing earlier on Tuesday.
This came hours after the supreme court rejected William Ruto’s request to remove specific commissioners from the case.
Paul Muite, one of the attorneys defending the four commissioners, supported the situation and sought the court for guidance.
“The court is aware of applications filed yesterday night responding to the same problem on the right team of attorneys lawfully representing IEBC. “I propose that the court issue guidance on the same,” Muite remarked.
Githu Muigai and Kamau Karori, who are IEBC’s attorneys, have submitted pleadings on the commission’s behalf. Additionally filing on the commission’s behalf is my coworker Issa Mansur.
rely on a decision made by four out of the seven commissioners,” he continued.
Muite maintained that where there is no agreement, the majority rules.
“We have the right to speak on behalf of the commission. According to CEO Marjan Hussein’s orders, which he receives from the commission, our employees submitted the applications, he said.
On the other hand, Githu Muigai tried to have the arguments of one of the attorneys for the Cherera-led team, Issa Mansur, dismissed.
He claimed that the four commissioners had broken the law.
“On August 29, IEBC submitted a request to strike Issa Mansur’s pleadings. The request is still being processed. Obtaining services in opposition to it is not the commission’s responsibility, Muigai asserted.
Senior Counsel James Orengo encouraged the court to reply to the IEBC petitions that had been late-filed the day before while offering his opinion.
Omtatah’s attorney SC Ojienda pleaded with the court to hear from all parties so that the justices may make an educated decision.
