The Law Society of Kenya on Wednesday asked the High Court to compel the electoral commission and the anti-corruption agency to enforce an ethics code for elected leaders to curb inflammatory speech, punish integrity breaches and strengthen accountability among politicians.
It also urged the court to order consequences for elected officials found to have breached integrity standards, including the suspension of their salaries and allowances.
But the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) opposed the petition, arguing that existing laws already provide for accountability and candidate vetting.
During a hearing of the petition before Justice Roselyne Aburili on Wednesday, the commissions, together with the National Assembly and the Attorney General, said the existing laws already regulate public officers and candidate vetting.
Attorney General Dorcas Oduor.
Photo credit: Bonface Bogita | Nation Media Group
LSK argued that the dispute concerns elected officials’ conduct throughout their time in public office, not only during campaigns.
Filed in September 2025, the petition targets the EACC, the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties, the IEBC, the Parliamentary Service Commission, the National Cohesion and Integration Commission and the Attorney-General.
The petition follows concerns over the vetting of candidates ahead of the 2022 General Election, when the EACC reportedly flagged 241 aspirants over corruption and integrity concerns, as well as inflammatory remarks attributed to politicians.
The society argues that the failure to enforce clear, specific ethics rules has allowed alleged misconduct by elected leaders to go unchecked, and wants citizens empowered to report violations both before elections and throughout officials’ tenure.
In its petition, LSK cited alleged inflammatory statements by politicians as examples of conduct it says has not attracted effective accountability. The petition included video clips of two MPs making inflammatory remarks.
It accuses State agencies and the independent constitutional commissions of failing to establish and enforce effective integrity rules for candidates and elected officials. It invokes Chapter Six, which sets constitutional standards for leadership and integrity in public office.
LSK wants the court to declare that Kenyans have a duty to provide information about candidates’ integrity before they are cleared to contest elections. It wants verified information about leaders to count as proof of a breach.
The petition asks the institutions to verify submissions within 20 days, with failure to act resulting in the information being treated as validated.
It also seeks an order requiring the Parliamentary Service Commission and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to stop salaries and allowances to elected officials proven to have breached integrity standards.
Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon.
Photo credit: Wilfred Nyangaresi | Nation Media Group
The IEBC disputed LSK’s claim that no code of conduct exists. Its lawyer said the commission develops a code of conduct for candidates and political parties and monitors compliance with electoral laws.
The advocate said the IEBC vets candidates alongside the Registrar of Political Parties, National Police Service, EACC and Commission for University Education.
The court heard that 21,862 candidates were vetted before the 2022 general election and five were disqualified. The process generated 325 complaints, which it said were handled by the commission’s dispute resolution committee.
The lawyer said the commission had performed its duties before the 2022 election. The commission said the Constitution restricts the IEBC from barring candidates where appeal or review avenues remain unexhausted. The court heard that LSK had identified no leader who won office because of the commission’s inaction.
“The petition does not disclose any case against the first respondent,” IEBC said, urging dismissal of the petition.
National Assembly building in Nairobi.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
The National Assembly also rejected the claim that Parliament had failed to enact conduct rules for public officers. It cited the Leadership and Integrity Act, the Conflict of Interest Act and said LSK had not shown the Assembly failed in its mandate. Its advocate asked the court to strike out the petition with costs.
Attorney-General’s lawyer Samuel Kaumba argued that his office had been wrongly joined because the petition disclosed no factual basis for a claim against it. He also said the case was academic because LSK had not shown that the IEBC or EACC refused to receive information about alleged integrity breaches.
However, LSK lawyer Joseph Konga said the respondents focused too narrowly on candidate vetting. “Does the mandate of the second respondent (IEBC) in governing the integrity of individuals end at elections? The simple answer is no,” he said.
Mr Konga argued that existing rules were general and did not amount to a specific code governing elected leaders throughout their tenure. He said LSK was not asking the court to legislate, but to require institutions to apply existing laws and create a code suited to elected office.
Justice Aburili asked: “Can this court legislate?” Konga replied that legislation was not the Judiciary’s role, but enforcing existing laws was.
