Kabuchai MP hopeful 'shocked' by zero votes at home

Lawyers representing Kabuchai MP Lusweti Mukwe and his rival Nabangi Tale at Bungoma High Court, November 8, 2017. /JOHN NALIANYA
Lawyers representing Kabuchai MP Lusweti Mukwe and his rival Nabangi Tale at Bungoma High Court, November 8, 2017. /JOHN NALIANYA

Tale Nabangi, who lost the Kabuchai parliamentary race to Ford-Kenya's James Mukwe, says IEBC registered zero votes at his own polling station.

Nabangi said he was shocked that even his own vote did not count.

He told Bungoma High Court on Wednesday that the results meant neither he nor his family members voted on August 8.

"Your honour, despite the fact that I voted at Buake Primary School, IEBC's declaration was that zero votes were cast," Tale told the court.

According to Forms 34b that IEBC gave the court, nobody voted at the polling station with 469 registered people.

Mukwe garnered 18,485 votes against Tale's 18,062, a slim margin of 423 votes.

Tale is seeking the nullification of the results, his argument being that there were massive irregularities.

He claimed voters were bribed, threatened and intimidated

at polling stations.

"I have witnesses to the effect that the first respondent bribed voters and scared others," Tale told the court.

The court was also told a returning officer was arrested with ballot boxes in his house and arraigned before a Bungoma magistrate court.

Nabangi added votes at his home polling station would have made him the winner.

Earlier, Judge Abida Aroni directed IEBC to furnish the court with all KIEMS kits indicating the number of people who cast their ballots.

IEBC, through lawyer Kenneth Akide, failed to provide the data on two occasions.

"It is not a request but an order by this court that you produce them in court, failure of which I will record that IEBC refused [to do as instructed]," the judge said.

The hearing continues.

WATCH: The latest videos from the Star