Migori Senate aspirant files petition against ODM after direct ticket issued to rival

Migori Senate aspirant Willies Misare has filed a petition against the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party over its decision to issue the ticket to his competitor under what he terms as an “opaque manner.”

Misare, in a court papers filed by lawyer Omwanza Ombati, argues that he complied with party requirements by sending his application documents seeking to be nominated as the candidate for the seat on time, complete with the required fees.

He claims that he was called to a meeting at a Nairobi hotel on March 5, 2022 by the ODM National Elections Board (NEB), which was however allegedly hijacked by the party national chair John Mbadi.

According to Misare, Mbadi read “unpublished and/or fake opinion polls” before decreeing that “ODM Migori ticket would be issued without engaging the voters as mandated by the party constitution.”

“This action was manifestly afoul of the Political Parties Act, ODM’s Constitution and laws. Notwithstanding the requirement for independence of the NEB and the provisions of the ODM Constitution on its composition, the Party Chairman purported to take over its role,” read court papers seen by Citizen Digital.

“True to the petitioner’s fears, the said ticket was issued directly to Eddy Oketch without consensus or primary elections according to Rule 24 of the ODM Party Election and Nomination Rules, 2014 which provides for nominations to be undertaken through universal suffrage.”

Misare, who is also a city lawyer, adds that he reached out to the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanisms to air his grievances but his efforts came to naught, as neither the party nor its NEB responded to his letters of complaint.

He further cites a financial hurdle in the party’s process of lodging an appeal for Senatorial nominations saying the levies charged are a little too punitive for his status as a young aspirant.

“The Respondents charge a fee of Kshs. 70,000 for appeal in respect to the office of the Senatorial nominations. The appeal fee is unconscionable and meant to stifle and clog the right of the applicant to access any dispute resolution mechanism, particularly taking into account his status as a youth,” states court papers.

“The said amounts are an impediment to access to justice through the party’s Internal Dispute Resolution Mechanisms for being excessive in the circumstances. The Applicant is a beneficiary of the affirmative action program as a youth where he paid Kshs. 125,000 instead of Kshs. 250,000 as nomination fees to enable him participate in the party primaries.”

Misare also argues that it would only be logical if the nomination fees paid by candidates who sought the party ticket in the Migori Senatorial race are returned to them since the exercise was not even held in the first place; however, he says, ODM has since gone mute on the matter.

The petitioner now wants the court to issue an order revoking the Raila Odinga-led party’s decision to issue a direct ticket to Eddy Oketch.

He also wants a directive issued to the party to conduct a free and fair nomination exercise for the Migori County Senatorial seat within 7 days.

Further, he wants the party to refund the nomination fees he paid for the primaries which were never held, and to also bear the costs of the petition.