Security was tight outside the courtroom, which has
been
center stage for Kenyan politics since it nullified the results of
August’s presidential election. That decision led to the re-run
election on Oct. 26.
The court has not convened
since the day before last month’s election, when it had been due to
deliberate on a last-minute request to delay the vote. But that hearing
was canceled because not enough judges showed up to make a quorum.
The
judges had demanded more security after the bodyguard of the deputy
chief justice was shot the day before the hearing and said they would
refuse to attend hearings without it, a judicial source said. The
government turned them down, the source said [L8N1N64ON].
The
chief justice later denied the Reuters report on the security issue and
said the police had “enhanced” the judges’ security [L4N1N83RU].
All
six judges expected to be present showed up for Tuesday’s meeting. The
seven-member bench is still missing one of its judges, who fell ill
during the hearings related to the August election and has since been
receiving treatment.
The judges are expected to
announce when proceedings will begin and whether it will hear all three
petitions filed - one by a former lawmaker and the other two by civil
society organizations.
Kenyatta came to power
in 2013 and won a second and final term in August, defeating opposition
leader Raila Odinga by 1.4 million votes.
Odinga
did not contest the repeat vote on Oct. 26, saying it would be unfair
because the election commission had failed to implement reforms.
Kenyatta won with 98 percent of the vote, though opposition supporters
staged a boycott and prevented polls from opening in the west of the
country.
Two of the petitions filed with the
court argue the poll’s outcome is void because the election board did
not hold fresh nominations after the Aug. 8 poll was invalidated.
The
third petition, filed by a civil society organization, is a case
against the opposition. It seeks to hold them liable for losses incurred
because of their demonstrations.
None of the
petitions focus on whether the election board was adequately prepared to
hold the repeat poll - a central reason cited by the opposition for
boycotting the vote.
The week before the vote,
the head of the commission said he could not guarantee the vote would
be free and fair, citing interference from politicians and threats of
violence against his colleagues.
The court has until Nov. 20 to rule on the petitions. If the election result is upheld, Kenyatta will be sworn in on Nov. 28.
Kenya
is a regional hub for trade, diplomacy and security and its prolonged
election season has disrupted its economy. Human rights groups say at
least 66 people have died in bloodshed surrounding the two elections. The Supreme Court was created by a 2010 constitution that followed a violent political crisis three years earlier. Around 1,200 people were killed in ethnic clashes after a disputed election in 2007.
(THE REUTERS)
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