Former Meru Governor Peter Munya has received his first win in the election petition he filed challenging the election of Governor Kiraitu Murungi in the August election.
The High Court has ordered the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to seal all the ballot boxes used in the Meru Gubernatorial race until the final ruling on the petition is issued.
Justice Francis Gikonyo issued the directive on Tuesday following Mr Munya's quest to have all the ballot boxes protected, arguing that they might be tampered with pending the hearing and determination of the case.
During the hearing, Mr Munya, through his lawyer Martin Gitonga, asked the court to order the lockdown of two warehouses where the IEBC had stored the election materials.
[caption caption="Peter Munya during the court hearing"]
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Interestingly, IEBC lawyer Kioko Kilumi did not oppose the application stating that it was the court's obligation to safeguard election materials.
In his ruling, Justice Gikonyo told both parties to put additional seals in the form of serial numbers that would distinguish the ballot boxes used in the election.
The Electoral Commission, however, indicated that the Kenya Integrated Election Management Systems (KIEMS) kits had already been reconfigured for use in the repeat presidential election.
In a separate case filed by former Meru senatorial aspirant Mugambi Imanyara against incumbent Mithika Linturi, Mr Imanyara wants the IEBC to produce the Senator's academic certificates and the final forms used to declare the results.
[caption caption="Meru governor Kiraitu Murungi"]
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He argued that the Linturi's win should be invalidated since he had submitted fake academic papers to the IEBC in the 2013 and 2017 election.
Mr Imanyara, through his lawyer Ann Awuor, refuted the claim stating that the petitioner was just using the court to get evidence that would help his case.
