Uganda’s Supreme Court Lady Justice Prof. Lillian Tibatemwa-Ekirikubinza who is also the Chairperson of the University Advisory Council, Cavendish University Uganda is among the high level Panel of Eminent African Jurists in Kenya to observe proceedings of the 2022 presidential election petition.
The petition by presidential candidate Raila Odinga, among eight others, is seeking to challenge the results of the August 9 poll that saw Deputy President William Ruto declared President-elect with 50.49 percent of the votes cast.
Dr Ruto was declared the winner amid protests from four commissioners of the electoral agency IEBC, who accused the chairman Wafula Chebukati of hijacking the process and acting unilaterally to announce a winner.
The 2022 Trial Observation Mission will be headed by the retired Chief Justice of the Republic of Tanzania, Justice Mohammed Chande Othman. Other judges include; Lady Justice Prof. Lillian Tibatemwa-Ekirikubinza from the Supreme Court of Uganda, Lady Justice Ivy Kamanga from the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal, Justice Moses Chinhengo from the Court of Appeal, Lesotho, and Justice Henry Boissie Mbha, the president of the Electoral Court of South Africa. The Jurists are members of the Africa Judges and Jurists Forum (AJJF).
The jurists are expected to attend all Supreme Court hearings, monitor and document the presidential election petition based on international human rights standards of a fair trial. The team will also analyse the role and independence of the Judiciary in examining the electoral disputes and review the socio-political climate in the run-up to the petition.
Kenya media reported that at the end of the trial observation, the observers will develop a comprehensive report aiming at contributing to a more professional, independent, impartial, and accountable Judiciary, a more independent legal profession, and better adherence to the rule of law and international legal standards concerning the resolution of electoral disputes.
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African jurists in Kenya for presidential election petition
Ugandan Supreme Court Judge among jurists attending Kenya 2022 Presidential election petition
