Kipipiri MP Wanjiku Muhia. /FILE
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is this morning set to deliver its verdict in a case against Kipipiri MP Wanjiku Muhia over alleged violations of the Electoral Code of Conduct.
Muhia is accused of uttering inflammatory remarks during a political campaign rally in Ol Kalou Constituency, Nyandarua county, allegedly breaching regulations governing political conduct during electoral activities.
The judgment will be delivered at 10 am at the IEBC headquarters by the commission's Electoral Code of Conduct Enforcement Committee, chaired by Commissioner Alutalala Mukhwana.
The verdict comes after dramatic scenes unfolded during the committee's proceedings on Thursday, July 2, when Muhia's legal team staged a walkout in protest over the composition of the committee and its jurisdiction to hear the matter.
The lawyers argued that the panel lacked the proper mandate and authority to preside over the case, insisting that the hearing should instead have been conducted by IEBC chairperson Erastus Ethekon and vice chairperson Fahima Araphat.
The IEBC dismissed the preliminary objection, maintaining that the committee was properly constituted and fully empowered under the law to enforce compliance with the Electoral Code of Conduct.
Despite the objections and the walkout by the defence team, the committee proceeded with the hearing.
Muhia was absent during the session. Mukhwana said the law did not require parties to remain present for the proceedings to continue.
The committee chair noted that the MP had not appeared despite being notified that the proceedings would commence at 10 am.
"The MP, Wanjiku Muhia, has not yet arrived despite our notice indicating our session will begin at 10 am," Mukhwana said.
He added that the committee had not received any communication confirming her absence, attendance or lateness.
The matter has attracted significant political and legal attention as the country prepares for the 2027 General Election, with the IEBC maintaining that the process forms part of its constitutional mandate to enforce compliance with the Electoral Code of Conduct.
"The hearing is part of the Commission's mandate to ensure compliance with the Electoral Code of Conduct and to promote peaceful, lawful and credible electoral processes," the IEBC said.
On Monday, the commission said the judgment would be delivered in the full glare of the media.
"The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), through its Electoral Code of Conduct Enforcement Committee, invites members of the media to cover the delivery of judgment in the matter involving Hon Wanjiku Muhia, Member of the National Assembly for Kipipiri Constituency," a dispatch to the media read.
The commission said the session would begin at 10 am in the IEBC boardroom on the sixth floor of Anniversary Towers in Nairobi.
