• After the filing, the court has 14 days to hear and determine the petition –being September 6. The court decision would be final.
• But within the 14 days are equally critical timelines to which respondents and the parties in the case will be required to adhere to.
Image: EZEKIEL AMING'A
Persons who may seek to challenge the results of the presidential election will have up to August 23 at 2pm to file the case at the Supreme Court.
This is considering that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has until August 16 to declare the result of the presidential election and deliver a note to the Chief Justice and the President.
A petition challenging the president-elect’s win is to be filed within seven days after the date of declaration of the results by the IEBC.
The new timelines drawn by the Chief Justice Martha Koome-led court are a departure from the past, when the deadline for those filing on the last available day was set at midnight.
After the filing, the court has 14 days to hear and determine the petition –being September 6. The court decision would be final.
But within the 14 days are equally critical timelines to which respondents and the parties in the case will be required to adhere to.
The court, for instance, requires the IEBC to submit certified copies of documents used to declare the results within 48 hours after they are served with the petition.
IEBC is required to submit forms used to declare results at the polling station, constituency tallying centre, and national tallying centre.
Respondents should be served within 24 hours of filing the petition–the latest being August 24, after which they have four days to file their submissions.
The court says the petitioner(s) should serve the respondent through electronic means within six hours of filing the case.
“Where the respondent doesn’t wish to oppose, they may file a notice of intention not to oppose the petition within three days of service,” the rules read.
“A respondent who has given notice of intention not to oppose a petition shall not be allowed to appear or act as a party in the petition or any subsequent proceedings.”
Parties would be allowed a day to file a reply to the matters, interlocutory applications–made in the course of the submissions, and to present third-party applications.
If the timelines remain in the extremes as projected, the court would hold a pre-trial conference on August 31 and hence could deliver a decision by September 6.
Hearing, once commenced, proceeds uninterrupted daily, until the conclusion of the case, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
The rules provide that “where there are multiple petitions filed, time starts to run on the date the last petition is filed.”
The court case is among four scenarios that are likely to play out in the race dominated by Deputy President William Ruto and Raila Odinga.
The outcome of the vote would determine the timelines for the swearing-in of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s successor.
Apart from the Supreme Court petition, the swearing-in of the new president would also depend on the winner attaining the required 50 per cent plus one threshold.
If the outcome of the results as declared by the IEBC meets the threshold and is not petitioned, the incoming president would be sworn in by August 30.
Where none of the four contenders meets the 50 per cent plus one threshold, a fresh election would be held within 30 days–on October 9.
However, in the case where no candidate meets the threshold, only the candidates with the greatest number of votes–largely the top two, would participate in the subsequent election.
If the Apex Court upholds the declaration by the IEBC, the new president has to be sworn in within seven days, in this scenario being by 2 pm on September 13.
After the 2017 presidential election was nullified, a repeat election was ordered within 60 days by the bench led by retired Chief Justice David Maraga.
For this year’s case–if any, petitioners would be required to deposit Sh1 million as security of costs before filing the petition and pay the prescribed court fee.
The Apex Court has provided that petitioners ensure the electronic version and supporting documents are similar to the paper version presented.
A petitioner may request the court to withdraw the petition at any stage of the proceedings but the petition cannot be abated because a party has died in the course of proceedings.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris