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– Five Jubilee MPs want CORD principals Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetangula jailed for contempt of court
– The lawmakers say CORD leaders have continued to organise anti-IEBC protests despite a court order barring them
– Opposition leaders have vowed to continue with the weekly protests until the current IEBC commissioners leave office
Jubilee MPs want Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) leaders jailed for contempt of court.
The five lawmakers, on Monday, May 23, filed contempt of court proceedings Justice Joseph Onguto against the opposition leaders for allegedly disobeying orders.
“The petition seeks interpretation of the rule of law and respect for court orders. I therefore certify it as urgent and order parties be served immediately,” said Onguto as quoted by The Star.
The legislators argued that the weekly anti-Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission protests had been barred by court yet CORD was still organising them.
Kabete MP Ferdinand Waititu, Gatundu South Moses Kuria, Kikuyu’s Kimani Ichung’wa, Thika Town’s Alice Ng’ang’a and Dennis Waweru of Dagoretti South are they petitioners.
They want CORD principals Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Mosyoka and Moses Wetang’ula held accountable for the apparent defiance.
The Jubilee MPs also want Siaya Senator James Orengo be punished as he is the one who represented CORD in an earlier petition before Justice Isaac Lenaola.
Lenaola had cautioned CORD protesters against violently storming the IEBC offices to eject the commission officials. He also ruled that demonstrators must maintain law and order during the anti-IEBC demonstrations.
Police, during the fourth weekly anti-IEBC demonstration, shot dead a protester in Siaya county. Six others were rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
Another protester, who was injured in the Kisumu during the anti-IEBC demonstrations, also died while receiving treatment at the Aga Khan Hospital. Two other anti-IEBC protesters in Kisumu were also taken to the hospital after being shot by police.
In Migori county, five anti-IEBC protesters were also shot by prison warders. The were rushed to hospital in critical condition, the area police boss David Kirui confirmed.
Elsewhere in Homa Bay county, two women were also shot and rushed to hospital in a police vehicle.
Raila, who led the anti-IEBC demonstrations in Nairobi, has been urging his supporters not to stop the protests despite the excessive force used against them by the police.
On Tuesday, May 17, Raila and his allies turned down a proposal by church leaders to suspend the anti-IEBC demonstrations and seek an alternative means to air their grievances.
The clerics offered to be mediators but the leaders maintained that the protests would continue until Jubilee makes a public commitment to dialogue and the IEBC commissioners are out of office.
On the legality of the anti-IEBC demonstrations, Raila maintained that the coalition was within the law to hold such protests.
He dismissed claims that the anti-IEBC demonstrations were illegal and urged CORD supporters not fall for the propaganda. The demonstrations are within their rights as stipulated in Article 37 and 38 of the Constitution, he said.
The former prime minister further trashed the argument that IEBC commissioners could only be sent home through parliament.
Raila said Kenyans had the options of either handling the matter through their elected representatives in parliament or directly demanding for the removal of the IEBC commissioners. And they had chosen the latter.
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