National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale on Thursday moved to Court of Appeal to have a poll petition appeal filed by former deputy speaker Farah Maalim disregarded.
Duale asked the Appeal Court to reject the notice on grounds that it was filed late.
“The said notice of appeal was filed seven days after the mandatory timelines and as such, Maalim has failed to institute the appeal within the prescribed time,” reads Duale's application.
[caption caption="File image of former National Assembly deputy speaker Farah Maalim"]
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Mr Maalim moved to the Appellate court challenging the High Court decision that upheld Duale's election as Member of Parliament for Garissa Township.
However, High Court judge Justice Hedwig Ong'udi ruled that Mr Maalim failed to provide sufficient evidence to back his claims that the Garissa Township election was marred by irregularities.
The judge further dismissed all allegations raised by Mr Maalim and ruled that Mr Duale was validly elected.
The court then directed Mr Maalim to pay Ksh 6 million as costs for the petition with half the amount to be paid to Mr Duale and the rest to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru also filed a notice of appeal at the Supreme Court following a Court of Appeal ruling that revived a petition challenging her election in August 2017.
Through her lawyers, the notice was filed just moments after the three-judge bench at the Appellate court handed victory to former Gichugu Member of Parliament Martha Karua on March 2.
To protect her governorship, Waiguru asked the highest court in the land to overturn the Court of Appeal ruling and uphold the August 2017 Kirinyaga election results.
[caption caption="File image of Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru"]
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