How 3 Supreme Court Judges Ruled in 2013 & 2017 Presidential Petitions

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  Lady Justice Martha Koome (center) and the other members of the Supreme Court bench.
  As former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and his Azimio team prepare to file a petition at the Supreme Court by close of business on Monday, August 22, the plate of the highest court on the land is about to get really busy.
  
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• Azimio maintains that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) manipulated presidential results that saw Odinga's main competitor, William Ruto, declared President elect.

  Ruto's camp, on the other hand, maintains that the process was fair and results were uploaded onto the portal for everyone to tally.

  IEBC Chairperson Wafula Chebukati also insists that the August 9 general election, and the subsequent results announced on August 15, was a free and fair exercise despite the messy split.

  

  Supreme Court Judge Smokin Wanjala during a past case hearing.

  THE STANDARD
  After all the evidence has been adduced, the verdict will be down to the 7-judge bench headed by Lady Justice Martha Koome to either uphold or annul the election outcome.

  Mteuleonline revisits past presidential elections petitions and how the Supreme Court judges who sat on the 2013 and 2017 bench argued the cases.

  Lady Justice Njoki Ndung'u

  Among the longest serving judges of the Supreme Court, Lady Justice Njoki Ndung'u who joined the bench in 2012.

  In 2013, she was among the six-judge bench that dismissed a petition filed by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga who challenged the Presidential results that announced President Uhuru Kenyatta as the President-elect.

  In 2017, although the overall election was annulled, Ndung'u was the only among two judges on the bench, then headed by emeritus Justice David Maraga, that sided with the re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta.

  Dr Smokin Wanjala,

  The legal scholar joined the Supreme Court in 2012 and took part in the determination of the two Presidential petitions in 2013 and 2017.

  In 2013, he was part of the six judges that upheld the election of President Uhuru Kenyatta thereby dismissing the petition filed by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

  In 2017, however, he voted to annul President Uhuru Kenyatta resulting in a run-off that the outgoing Head of State still won.

  Wanjala was among the four who included Chief Justice David Maraga, Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu and Isaac Lenaola.

  Justice Mohammed Ibrahim

  Justice Mohammed Ibrahim, who has also been a judge of the Supreme Court since 2012, did not participate in the 2017 Presidential petition ruling because he was battling an illness.

  In 2013, however, he was part of the 6-judge bench that upheld Uhuru's election. The ruling at the time was a six-bench, headed by Retired Justice Dr Willy Mutunga, because the position of Deputy Chief Justice was still vacant.

  Since joining the bench in 2016 as the DCJ, Justice Philomena Mwilu was part of the six judges that revoked the 2017 elections and will be handling her second presidential election petition in 2022.

  Justice Isaac Lenaola was part of the bench that annulled Presidential Uhuru's win in 2017, while Lady Justice March Koome and Justice William Ouko will be handling their first Presidential election petition.

  Kenyatta appointed Justice Koome as President of the Supreme Court in 2021, replacing Justice Maraga who exited the service after attaining mandatory retirement age of 70.

  On the other hand, Justice Ouko, the former President of the Court of Appeal, joined the Apex bench in May 2021, to replace Justice Jackton Ojwang who retired in February 2020.

  

  The Supreme Court of Kenya.