President Uhuru Kenyatta. [Photo/ PSCU]
Politicians allied to the National Super Alliance (NASA) coalition are unhappy that President Uhuru Kenyatta and other Jubilee leaders have cautioned the Judiciary not to allow the opposition to use courts to sabotage the election process. For starters, President Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto, were within their rights to criticise the Judiciary if they saw that things were not going on well in the other arm of the government. After all, the Head of State is the chief executive officer of Kenya. He cannot just sit and watch the country go down and path of self-destruction. Elections are very important. It is because of polls that more than half a million Kenyans were displaced from their homes in 2007/8, and at least another 1,000 lost their lives — after Raila Odinga disputed the presidential election results. The country has learnt a tough lesson, which is why we can’t afford to go back.
In a way, elections are a national security matter. Meddling in the August 8 polls can put the country in a very difficult position. And what the courts have been doing in the recent months in crippling the IEBC so that it’s unable to conduct the crucial exercise.
High Court Judge George Odunga has been at the centre of many of the controversial decisions that the Opposition politicians have filed. But, in all fairness, Judge Odunga should have recused himself from all cases involving NASA lawyer James Orengo, who has featured as a lead lawyer in virtually all disputes. Why?To the surprise of many ordinary Kenyans, Judge Odunga is Siaya Senator James Orengo’s relative — Odunga’s wife is Orengo’s niece. Perhaps that is why, many Kenyans are now speculating, Judge Odunga’s rulings on all NASA cases have been very predictable. Orengo does not seem like he can lose a case when Mr Odunga is sitting on the bench. In the latest ruling, where the court nullified the printing of the presidential ballot papers, very good arguments were made, but which did not seem to persuade the judges. If indeed there was no public participation, which is yet to be fully defined, in the awarding of the printing tender, why did the court not nullify the printing of ballots for the other positions — governors, MPs, senators etc? Asking IEBC to start tending afresh when we’re 30 days to elections in not taking into consideration public interest. It’s setting up the electoral body for failure. So, what is wrong with the President and his team asking the Judiciary not allow itself be used by the Opposition politicians, who are keen to postpone the date of August 8 polls and scuttle the election process?