Mbeere North MP Wamuthende declines to testify in election petition hearing

Mbeere North Member of Parliament Leo Wamuthende has declined to take the witness stand in the ongoing election petition challenging his victory, choosing instead to rely on his sworn affidavit.

The petitioner, Newton Kariuki, has opposed the move and filed an application seeking to have Wamuthende struck out of the proceedings.

Kariuki argues that the MP should not be allowed to continue participating in the case without appearing in court for cross-examination.

He has also asked the court to order a scrutiny and recount of votes in 32 polling stations out of the 134 used in the election, citing alleged discrepancies.

Through his lawyers, Kiragu Thuita and Ndegwa Njiru, the petitioner maintained that the irregularities observed in various forms could, if verified through scrutiny, potentially alter the outcome of the election in his favour.

The petitioner further claimed that the high number of assisted voters during the election was part of a wider scheme that disadvantaged him.

However, Wamuthende, through his lawyer Charles Mwongela, opposed the application, terming it a “fishing expedition.”

Mwongela, who also represents the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and returning officers in the case, argued that the petitioner had failed to point out specific discrepancies in Form 35A and 35B, which contain polling station and constituency tally results.

He added that the petitioner was attempting to use the court process to justify dissatisfaction with the election outcome rather than presenting verifiable irregularities.

The defence further stated that the Kenya Integrated Elections Management System (KIEMS) kits functioned as required, noting that where challenges arose, the process was backed up by the use of the physical voter register.

On the issue of voter registration, the IEBC clarified that the case of one Collis Munene, who was registered at Muondu Polling Station despite the area being under a by-election freeze, was not part of any scheme to rig the election.

The commission termed it an isolated incident, attributing it to the nationwide continuous voter registration exercise that was ongoing at the time.

The court was also told that no single evidence has been enduced to show that Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku took seize of the polling station as purported by the petitioners.

The defence said the fire incident was caused by a pressure lamp used by an IEBC official to light the room for counting, and that it was not a result of violence caused by burning ballot papers.

The court is expected to rule on the applications as the hearing continues.