NAIROBI (Reuters) – A leading Kenya opposition figure has petitioned the East African Court of Justice to overturn President William Ruto’s August election victory, a win that drew legal challenges but was upheld by the country’s top court.
Martha Karua, a former justice minister who was the running mate to veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga, on Friday submitted a petition accusing the Kenyan electoral commission of a “clear violation of the applicable laws.”
In her petition to the regional court, which is based in neighbouring Tanzania, Karua said the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission’s (IEBC) “engaged in multiple acts that violated the rights of the applicants and of other citizens.”
The violations included allowing unauthorised people to access, delete, alter or upload results, Karua said in the petition filed jointly with Muslims for Human Rights, a non-governmental organization.
An IEBC spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment.
Kenya’s Supreme Court in September upheld Ruto’s victory.
Odinga accepted the Supreme Court’s ruling, allaying fears of political violence experienced after previous elections.
Ruto won the election held in August despite a public repudiation by his former boss, outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta, who said Ruto was “not fit for office.”
(Reporting by Ayenat Mersi; Writing by Hereward Holland; Editing by James Macharia Chege and Josie Kao)
