The ground is heating up for the ODM fresh parliamentary elections after nullifications blow to Ugenya constituents and the seat holder Chris Karan.
Reportedly the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) will not conduct fresh nominations for the Ugenya parliamentary seat in the coming by-elections, Secretary General Edwin Sifuna has announced.
ODM will instead use a legal argument to avoid the nomination process.”We will follow the precedent set by the Supreme Court, which said that in a by-election there is no need for holding fresh party nominations,” Mr Sifuna said.
According to Sifuna, the repeat elections of October 26, 2017 brought about the Supreme Court ruling. As a result, most political parties have taken advantage of the ruling to avoid rigorous nomination processes.Do you agree with this?
The Ugenya seat fell vacant after the Supreme Court declared the election of Chris Karan invalid.This came after a successful appeal by Karan’s opponent, David Ochieng, of the Movement for Democracy and Growth Party (MDGP).
National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi is expected to declare the seat vacant this week after Chris Karan’s win in the 2017 elections was nullified. The top court upheld the Court of Appeal’s ruling which nullified Karan’s victory on grounds that the election was not free and fair.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission will have 90 days to conduct a by-election after Muturi declares the seat vacant. And ODM leader Raila Odinga is expected to use the by-election to stamp his political authority in the Luo Nyanza, his backyard.
So far, no other candidate has declared an interest in the seat. Secretary general Sifuna spoke as campaigns continue with both candidates reaching out to voters.
In the 2017 General Election Mr Karan narrowly beat Mr Ochieng with a margin of 200 votes.
As ODM await the election dates to be stated by the IEBC,already, it has emerged that Raila has tasked key Siaya leaders, including Governor Cornel Rasanga and Senator James Orengo to ensure the party retains the seat.
Speaking to journalists on phone, Rasanga was confident ODM will clinch the seat. “There is no way ODM will lose that seat. We will do everything possible to retain the seat”.