Former Nairobi Deputy Governor Polycarp Igathe has added to the confusion in Nairobi County succession after he asked the High Court to determine whether his resignation was formalised.
In an application filed in Nairobi on January 27, 2021, Igathe acknowledged that though he tendered a resignation letter, it was not yet clear as to whether any legal proceedings were undertaken to formalise it.
He asked the court to determine the legal implication in not concluding the resignation.
"That the legal effect of the failure to formalise or recognise my resignation and the failure by Nairobi County or any public institution to conduct any legal formalities to conclude my resignation is a matter to be determined by this honourable court in my humble view," an affidavit by Igathe read in part.
Igathe's Lawyer, Peter Kiiru told the court that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) had no right to conduct a by-election in Nairobi pending the determination of his client' resignation.
The court had, however, stopped the Nairobi gubernatorial by-election pending the determination of several cases.
The court also halted the swearing-in of Anne Kananu Mwenda as Governor of Nairobi, after several parties including the Law Society of Kenya moved to court seeking to have an election in the capital.
Kiiru argued that the Speaker of the County Assembly was not made aware of Igathe's resignation as stipulated by law. Igathe had resigned on January 12, 2018, in a letter addressed t then-Governor Mike Sonko and copied to the Speaker of the County Assembly.
The Nairobi Gubernatorial seat has become a bone of contention since the ouster of former Governor Sonko on December 17, 2020.
County Assembly Speaker Benson Mutura was sworn in as acting Governor, pending a by-election that was slotted for February 2021, however, the assembly moved to vet Kananu, though she had been rejected by the same house when first fronted by Sonko.
LSK sued to have her blocked from assuming the role of governor, arguing that the move subverted the constitutional right of the people in allowing them to have an elected leader of choice.
