As campaigns for the Banisa parliamentary by-election gather momentum ahead of the November 27, 2025 poll, a legal battle is brewing over the eligibility of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate Ahmed Maalim Hassan.
A voter in the constituency has moved to court seeking orders to nullify Mr Hassan’s candidature on grounds that he holds dual citizenship.
Petitioner Mohamedin Mohamed, through Ndegwa and Ndegwa Advocates, moved to the High Court at Milimani on October 24, 2025 and argued that Mr Hassan’s candidature will prejudice the sovereignty of the people of Banisa.
He said that Mr Hassan was unlawfully and irregularly cleared to contest, having failed to meet the eligibility requirements prescribed by the law.
He claims that Mr Hassan is in possession of dual citizenship—Kenyan and British. He claims that Mr Hassan’s Kenyan passport identifies him as Ahmed Maalim Hassan, with his place of birth given as Mandera, and date of birth as April 4, 1974. The said Kenyan passport expired on April, 25, 2012.
The petitioner further claims that Mr Hassan’s British passport bears the name Ali Barre Sheto, with the date of birth recorded as January 1, 1976 and in which he is named as a Somalia national originating from Qoryoley town, Lower Shabelle Region, in the South West State of Somalia.
Mr Ahmed Maalim Hassan, the UDA Party nominee for the Banissa parliamentary by-election, at the party headquarters.
Photo credit: DPCS
The petitioner argued that Mr Hassan holds two Kenyan identity cards showing that he was born in Mandera East.
The petitioner said that Kenyan national Identification numbers are assigned sequentially based on the date of birth and when the ID application was made. Therefore, it is scientifically and statistically improbable for a person born in 1974 to hold an identity card bearing a number in the range of 34 million, which reflects more recent registrations.
The petitioner argued that one of the ID cards could have been acquired fraudulently, likely in recent years, with the deliberate intention of obscuring Mr Hassan’s foreign nationality and presenting a false identity in order to qualify for nomination as a Kenyan parliamentary candidate.
The petitioner added that Article 99(2)(a) of the Constitution provides that a person is disqualified from being elected a Member of Parliament if the person owes allegiance to a foreign state.
And that by virtue of Article 78 (1) of the Constitution, clearing Mr Hassan to vie and contest for the political position violates this provision. He added that by dismissing the complaint, the IEBC willingly denied itself the opportunity to determine the said question.
By virtue of Article 78 (2), a state officer defined under Article 260 of the Constitution or a member of the defence forces is prohibited from holding dual citizenship.
The IEBC, through commissioners Marykaren Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan and Anne Nderitu, had dismissed the petitioner’s complaint, terming it a blatant lie and fabrication.
While dismissing the complaint, the three commissioners noted that the UDA candidate could only be barred from assuming office after elections by requiring that he rescinds the foreign citizenship before taking oath of office.
“That notwithstanding, the allegation that he is a dual citizen is a blatant lie and fabrication as he is solely a Kenyan citizen by birth and is a stranger to the name Ali Barre Sheto,” the IEBC declared.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki (right) hands the UDA Party nomination certificate to Banissa parliamentary candidate Ahmed Maalim Hassan Alio at the party headquarters.
Photo credit: DPCS
The Commission further noted that the complaint was filed on October 16, 2025, past the statutory timeline of 24 hours after the occurrence of the dispute.
According to the IEBC, this is contrary to Rule 8 (1) of the Rules of Procedure for Settlement of Disputes, which provides that, "A party to a dispute may, within 24 hours of the occurrence of a dispute, notify the Commission and any adverse party of the dispute, in writing."
At the High Court, Mr Mohamed, the petitioner, said the decision by the IEBC Dispute Resolution Committee dated October 21, 2025 violated Article 27 of the constitution, as it discriminated against him in favour of Mr Hassan.
He argued that the IEBC rendered the decision, without granting him an opportunity to be heard, an action that amounts to violation of Article 50 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010.
“Mr Hassan failed to disclose his dual citizenship to the IEBC and the returning officer in Banisa, thereby misleading the IEBC and the public, and fraudulently acquiring eligibility. By presenting himself under different names and identity documents, Mr Hassan has engaged in identity fraud and undermined the integrity of the electoral process,” the petitioner claimed.
When reached for comment, Mr Hassan dismissed the accusations and said that he is ready to face the petitioner in a court of law.
“That matter was filed at the IEBC and dismissed. You can see that was an afterthought decision by the petitioner and his company. This is a politically motivated petition, but I will sail through,” he said.
Mr Hassan maintained that he is Kenyan by birth and holds one ID card, stressing that “I have never resided in Britain as claimed. I have been in South Africa for a while and I decided to come back home to serve my community after my brother’s death,” he said on the phone.
He added, “I am a victim of political wars between some top politicians in Mandera fuelled by competition ahead of the 2027 elections, and this is how I have been turned into a punching bag by some opponents.”
Mr Ahmed Maalim Hassan and Governor Mohamed Khalif on September 10, 2025 in Banisa. Mr Hassan is seeking to succeed his late brother as Banisa MP in the November 27, 2025 by-elections.
Photo credit: Manase Otsialo | Nation
The petitioner is seeking a declaration that the decision delivered by the IEBC’s Dispute Resolution Committee on October 21, 2025 in Complaint No. 7 of 2025 was made in violation of Articles 10, 27, 47, 50(1), and 159(2)(d) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, for failure to accord the petitioner a fair hearing, for elevating procedural technicalities over substantive justice, and for acting in a manner that was unreasonable, irrational, and ultra vires to its constitutional mandate.
The petitioner is seeking orders restraining the IEBC and the Banisa constituency Returning Officer from gazetting, publishing, or allowing Mr Hassan’s name to appear as a validly nominated candidate in the Banisa Constituency by-election or any subsequent election, pending the determination of the petition.
He also wants the court to compel the IEBC to revoke and cancel the clearance and nomination of Mr Hassan as a candidate for the Banisa constituency by-lection.
All parties are set to appear for a brief oral hearing on October 30, 2025 before Justice Lawrence Mugambi.
