Embu Governor Wambora beats Kivuti in do-or-die petition

Embu Governor Martin Wambora in an earlier event. Court of Appeal upheld his win saying he was validly elected. [File, Standard]

The Court of Appeal on Friday overturned High Court's nullification of Embu Governor Martin Wambora's election.

The three-judge bench okayed Wambora’s win and revised the cost of petition set by the High Court’s Justice William Musyoka.

In February, Justice Musyoka nullified the election on the grounds that that it was marred by irregularities which undermined the electoral process.

He noted this was unearthed in the vote scrutiny and recount he had ordered.

“There is no doubt that the errors affected the final outcome of the election. I have come to the conclusion that there were irregularities and errors during the counting and tallying of votes. The results cannot be said to be credible, verifiable and reflecting the will of the people of Embu,” he ruled.

The court of appeal however, now says the learned judge erred in law, saying the minor irregularities did not warrant nullifying the win.

“He dealt with issues that had not been raised before him,” said appellate court’s Justice Fatuma Sichale.

Kivuti, who polled 96,775 votes against Wambora’s 97,760, a difference of 985 votes, filed petition after the August 8, 2017 election insisting the poll was not free and fair.

Governor with nine lives

Martin Wambora served as Runyenjes Member of Parliament for two terms before his stint as the Governor of Embu County.

Wambora would become the first governor to be impeached and the only one to face the jeopardy twice.


More to follow.