High Court declines to stop BBI signature verification

The High Court has declined a request by a voter in diaspora to stop the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) from receiving or verifying signatures collected recently through the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) in support of a referendum.

The case was filed under a certificate of urgency by James Gitau from Dallas, USA, who wants that IEBC, among other things, be barred from receiving and verifying the signatures if voters from diaspora are not included.

But Justice Jairus Ngaah, while certifying the matter as urgent, declined to stop the signature verification process and instead directed Mr Gitau to file a substantive motion which should be served to all parties cited in the case.

Mr Gitau, a resident of Dallas Fort Worth in the US, also wanted court to bar IEBC from holding a referendum for failing to register the diaspora voters.

He said IEBC has denied thousands of Kenyan citizens living abroad an opportunity to participate in the proposed constitution amendment referendum and elections. 

While seeking the prohibition order, Mr Gitau indicated that IEBC is yet to comply with a Supreme Court decision dated May 6, 2015 directing the commission to effect a progressive voter registration for Kenyan citizens living in the diaspora. 

Voter registration

The commission had also been directed to be filing periodic reports annually on such registration for review by the National Assembly and Senate through offices of the respective Speakers.

Further, IEBC was put in place an infrastructure for the comprehensive registration of diaspora voters so that numbers of such voters participating in general elections can increase progressively over time. 

Mr Gitau said IEBC was in violation of the apex court orders and therefore it should be restrained from receiving the 'partially collected signatures' until it complies with the court orders.

He wanted the prohibition to remain until the commission avails the opportunity for voter registration of the diaspora including his area in Dallas Fort Worth before holding any referendum or General Elections.

But Justice Ngaah declined to grant the orders and directed the petitioner to furnish the respondents with the court papers within seven days for expeditious disposal of the case. 

The respondents include the IEBC, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary, Attorney-General, National Assembly and Senate Speakers, and Governor for Central Bank. 

Upon being served with the court documents, Justice Ngaah directed that the respondents will within seven days file their responses and written arguments.

The case will be mentioned via video link on January 19, 2021 for further directions on determination or orders as may be necessary.