How Evans Kidero lost Homa Bay poll petition to Gladys Wanga
Former Nairobi governor Evans Kidero has suffered a major blow after the High Court upheld the victory of Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga.
Dr Kidero who had challenged the election of Ms Wanga filed a petition seeking to nullify the electoral process.
But the court dismissed his prayers saying the governor was validly elected.
“The third respondent (Wanga) was validly elected in accordance with the constitution. I certify and declare Wanga validly elected,” Justice Roselyne Aburili said on Tuesday.
The petition was dismissed with costs in which Dr Kidero will part with Sh3.5 million.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and its returning officer in Homa Bay Fredrick Apopa will pay Sh1 million, Ms Wanga and her running mate Oyugi Magwanga will pay Sh1.5 million while the ODM party will receive Sh1m.
In the meantime, the judge said a certificate of determination will be issued to the IEBC, the Speaker of the Senate and the county assembly.
IEBC announced Ms Wanga as the winner of the August 9 election with 244,559 votes.
Dr Kidero came in second with 154,182 votes.
But the ex-city boss and his running mate Elijah Kodo claimed the poll was rigged in favour of their competitor who they accused of engaging in electoral malpractices.
The judge highlighted 15 major issues in the petition.
She said the court relied on evidence presented before it to give its verdict.
“Court depends on what parties present before it. Cases are won or lost depending on what is presented before the judge,” Justice Aburili said.
This meant that Dr Kidero was supposed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he won the election but he was denied victory.
Ms Wanga on the other hand was supposed to counter this by presenting evidence that she won fairly.
According to Dr Kidero, the Raila Odinga led party ensured the election was not free to all.
In his petition, he said Mr Odinga’s utterance that voters should choose six piece made some residents not to vote for candidates of their choice.
He added that the party did not ensure a fair nomination process after it issued Ms Wanga with a certificate.
During rallies, he said, the governor and her party leader campaigned to influence voters against him.
According to the former governor, he lost because Mr Odinga worked alongside Ms Wanga to ensure he did not get support.
But the judge said everyone has the freedom to campaign and Mr Odinga’s presence in Homa Bay did not break any law.
“Raila is entitled to exercise his right to campaign for the candidate of his choice. He was more obligated to campaign for Wanga,” he said.
The court also said people have different ways to ask for votes and that Dr Kidero resigned from ODM and had no obligation to ask Mr Odinga to campaign for him.
“You can’t have your cake and eat it,” the judge said.
Justice Aburili added that a witness told the court that Dr Kidero failed to attend a meeting in Nairobi that determined who gets the ODM certificate.
“He would have raised issues if he attended the meeting,” the judge said.
Further, Dr Kidero failed to prove that the nomination process affected his election.
On allegations of vote staffing, Dr Kidero claimed results were changed in favour of his competitor.
He questioned why there were discrepancies in the number of votes cast for governor, Senate, woman rep and presidential seat when all voters were given six ballot boxes.
According to him, inconsistencies showed there was ballot staffing.
During hearing of the petition, the court ordered for scrutiny and recount of votes in selected polling stations.
The judge determined that there was no evidence of ballot staffing.
On allegations of allteration of requests on form 37 A, Justice Aburili said the Deputy Registrar Joy Wasonga established that there were no major alterations when she oversaw the recount exercise.
“Minor errors caused by human imperfection do not affect the entire electoral process,” Justice Aburili said.
The petition also claimed some agents were denied entry into polling stations and that it could have aided cheating.
But the court determined that there was no evidence that Dr Kidero’s agents were singled out.
On allegations of bribery the court said there is no evidence that whoever is reported to have been giving out money was from Ms Wanga’s team.
Justice Aburili said the petitioner did not adduce evidence that Ms Wanga or her agents moved around offering bribes.
The court however determined that Homa Bay County witnesses cases of violence during the electoral process.
Among evidence presented in court were videos showing charged youths.
More evidence was an Occurence Book extract that different people recorded at different police stations.
There was however no evidence that particular group was aligned to a particular candidate.
Dr Kidero said the highlights of the court verdict on his petition had been shared to him.
“Our legal team shall review the full text of the Judgment and we’ll make known our next course of action. In the meantime we plead with the people of Homa Bay to remain calm,” he said.
Dr Kidero had applied to be a chief administrate secretary and had been interviewed for the position.
Also read: Trader in Sh3 million fraud case skips court hearing, loses Sh100k bail
Baby mama! Samidoh publicly introduces Karen Nyamu at funeral