Election date case moved to May

By Judy Ogutu

The Court of Appeal has moved the hearing of a case challenging the March 2013 election date to May.

Kenyans will have to wait longer to know if the election date will change after the Appellate Judges directed that the case, which was set for hearing on Tuesday and Wednesday, be mentioned on May 8.

When the matter came up before Appellate Judges Samuel Bosire, Martha Koome and Hannah Okwengu on Tuesday, it was agreed that all the preliminary issues be dealt with during the hearing of the case to save on time.

In the case, lobby groups have moved to the Court of Appeal challenging a High Court decision on the election date.

They believe the High Court Judges Isaac Lenaola, David Majanja and Mumbi Ngugi erred in law and failed to do their calculations well.

The judges had ruled that the term of the current Parliament expires on January 14 next year. According to the High Court decision, the election could be held within 60 days after dissolution of Parliament.

The current Parliament first sat on January 15, 2008 and its term will expire on January 14 next year. The elections can thereafter be held within 60 days after dissolution of Parliament.

The lobby groups say the ruling by the High Court amounts to handing "secret ammunition" to Kibaki and Raila as it gives them opportunity to decide the next election date.

This, they argue, goes against the sole purpose of the provision in the constitution in relation to the election date.

They have faulted the High Court ruling saying the judges erred in law by arriving at the two options for election date.

In their view, the possible date for the next general election is October 14, 2012 or August 14, adding that the court should have given a definite date during the ruling.

It is also the group’s contention that the three judges failed to give meaning of the ‘fifth year’ in Article 101 of the constitution and instead referred to the former constitution to determine the date of expiry of the 10th Parliament.

Led by activist Ann Njogu, the groups contend that the judges failed to give Kenyans a certain answer that would guide them regarding the date of the first election under the new constitution.

In their decision the three judges had said that to determine the date of the first election under the constitution, reference has to be made to sections 9 and 10 of the sixth schedule.

The groups want the Court of Appeal to stop the implementation of the High Court ruling and give a certain date for the election.