Raila Odinga: Presidential Election Results Null, Void

Azimio La Umoja Coalition Presidential candidate Raila Odinga rejected the 2022 Presidential results announced by Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chair Wafula Chebukati on Monday, which saw Deputy President William Ruto win the presidential vote.

Addressing the media on Tuesday afternoon, Odinga termed the results as null and void and must be quashed by the court of law.

Raila made it known that he would be heading to court to challenge the 2022 Presidential results. Odinga accused the IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati of violating the Constitution and electoral laws in his decision to declare William Ruto as President-elect.

“Kenya faces a grave legal and political crisis. What happened yesterday was a travesty and blatant disregard of the laws of Kenya by Mr Chebukati,” Odinga said, adding that, “the figures announced by Mr. Chebukati are null and void and must be quashed by a court of law.”

Raila Odinga also said he is exploring all constitutional and legal means to settle the matter and urged Azimio supporters to remain calm.

“I want to commend our supporters for remaining calm and keeping the peace, and I urge them to continue to do so.  Let no one take the law into their own hands.  We are pursuing constitutional and lawful channels and processes to invalidate Mr. Chebukati’s illegal and unconstitutional pronouncement.  We are certain that justice will prevail,” said Odinga.

Odinga claims that Chebukati exercised dictatorship in law by proceeding to announce the election results despite four of the IEBC commissioners rejecting the results. The commissioners are vice chairperson Juliana Cherera, Francis Wanderi, Irene Masit, and Justus Nyang’aya. The four commissioners were nominated by President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday 5 August 2021.

“The IEBC is structured as a democratic institution in which decisions must be taken either by consensus or by a vote of the majority. The chairperson and a tiny minority of commissioners have no legal authority to take weighty decisions and proclaim them as the rulings of the IEBC.” Raila said.

“The law is clear on the role of the chairperson of the IEBC. The law does not vest in the chairperson the powers of a dictator to rule the IEBC unilaterally,” said Raila Odinga.