Voter seeks to block Sakaja

• Jun 13, 2022

Voter seeks to block Sakaja

By Paul Munene

A suit has been lodged at the electoral commission dispute tribunal seeking to revoke the clearance of UDA Nairobi governor candidate Johnson Koskei Sakaja to vie for the seat in the August polls.

Documents filed at Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Dispute Resolution committee by one Evans Kaita wants Sakaja disqualified from the forthcoming elections because of lack of requisite education.

The applicant argues that Sakaja does not meet the mandatory constitution qualifications for elections as a county governor as per Article 193(1)(b) of the constitution.

"The aforesaid candidate (Sakaja) does not possess a valid degree from a university recognized in Kenya as is enslaved in section 22(1)of the Election Act," Kaita states in papers.

Documents attached to the complaint demonstrate that the said candidate has not satisfied the requirements of the law as it is not clear how the senator could have completed the degree in Bachelor of Science in Management abroad while being a full-time Member of Parliament in Kenya.

The petitioner further questions the circumstances under which the purported degree was accredited to Sakaja shortly before the submission of his papers to IEBC.

"Wherefore the complainant prays that it be determined that the said Johnson Arthur Sakaja does not meet the statutory and mandatory qualifications for elections as the county governor candidate," Kaita says.

"In consequence, we implore that IEBC recalls and or revokes the certificate of clearance issued to Sakaja."

The disputed degree of Bachelor of Science in Management of Sakaja is from Team university in Uganda dated October 21, 2016

However, Sakaja on June 7 when IEBC cleared him to contest disputed the reports that he forged his degree certificate, noting the documents he had presented were the same documents he used during the 2017 General Election to vie for the Senate seat.