BBI Secretariat to Appeal High Court Ruling Nullifying Referendum Process
The Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Secretariat has vowed to appeal a High Court ruling that declared the entire BBI process as unconstitutional.
BBI Secretariat co-chairs Junet Mohamed and Dennis Waweru termed the decision as judicial activism that cannot derail a constitutional amendment.
They accused the five-judge bench of embarking on a fishing expedition, saying it granted orders that were not sought by the petitioners and having a personal vendetta against the president.
“Five judges dismissed the whole exercise and went even further than the petitioners themselves expected. They made very personalized attacks against the person and the office of the president. This was a very deliberate plan to plunge the country into a constitutional crisis and chaos through judicial activism,” said Junet Mohamed.
Justices Joel Ngugi, George Odunga, Jairus Ngaah, Teresia Matheka, and Chacha Mwita on Thursday ruled that President Kenyatta violated the Constitution by initiating the referendum process.
“The constitutional amendment Bill is an initiative of the president and the law is clear that the president does not have the constitutional mandate to initiate any constitutional changes,” the judges said in a unanimous ruling.
They added: “BBI is a hybrid initiative unknown to the constitution, therefore it is our finding that the popular initiative as means to amend the constitution under article 257 of the constitution is a power reserved for Wanjiku. Neither the president nor any state organ can utilize article 257 of the constitution to amend the constitution.”
The judges further faulted the decisions made by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), including verifying BBI signatures, saying the electoral body was not properly constituted as it lacked the requisite quorum of five commissioners to make any major policy decision.
“An injunction is hereby issued barring IEBC from undertaking any processes with regards to the amendment of the constitution,” the judges said.
The ruling followed a consolidated case filed by eight petitioners challenging the BBI process.
Comments (7)
UHURU and RAILA plus their political WHORES ARE BACK TO WORK.
Nullify means dead. You need to start all over again. Bribe, bribe, bribe and then get nullified again.
Asiye kubali kushindwa siye mshindani.Eat humble pie go back to the drawing board you have been outwitted How about trying to get to Statehouse through the front door instead of through the back door.Who says without BBI Ruto cannot be defeated he must and will be defeated trust Wanjiku she will deliver
Let it be known that the judges were bribed by Ruto to scatter the BBI! Judge Ngugi is one of the most corrupt judges in the judiciary! He uses proxies to receive bribes for him! And his bribe requests are into millions! Odunga is also a known con! The rest of them benefit from the proceeds of these two uncivilized legal officers! These judges have made a mockery of the themselves and the judiciary. They all preside over the most corrupt judicial system in Kenya today! No wonder they want Ruto to be the next president because he is very corrupt!
File the appeal because these judges caused a constitutional vacuum and they should all be fired! Where have they been bought and now they have sacrificed the interests of the common people! What a shame!
The judges do not want the constitution to be changed because it perfectly fits their corrupt and selfish nature! People need to revolt against the five judges who received heavy bribes from DP Ruto! They should all resign!
Why didn’t Waweru & Co object to those particular judges at the start of case?On whose behalf is AG Kihara firing the appeal?Why are the wasting taxpayers funds in the case?