By BRIAN MUSYOKA 

In a detailed judgment delivered at the High Court of Kenya in Embu today Thursday 21st May 2026, the court found that although several irregularities and electoral malpractices had been highlighted during the hearing, none of them substantially affected the final outcome of the election.

 The court consequently certified Leo Wa Muthende as the duly elected MP for Mbeere North Constituency.

The petitioner had challenged the election on multiple grounds, including allegations of violence, voter bribery, unlawful interference with the voter register, misuse of state resources, irregular appointment of election officials, and mishandling of election materials. He argued that the cumulative effect of the alleged violations rendered the election unconstitutional, illegal and invalid.

On the issue of appointment and dismissal of presiding officers, the court ruled that the petitioner failed to provide sufficient evidence identifying the officers allegedly irregularly appointed or dismissed.

 Justice Mwongo observed that the petition did not specify which legal provisions had been breached and found no proof of any disqualifying conduct by election officials.

The court also dismissed claims that failure to deploy printed voter registers disenfranchised voters. The court ruled that the evidence presented showed that physical voter registers were available at every polling station and that the KIEMS kits contained soft-copy replicas of the same registers. The judge concluded that no voter had been denied the opportunity to vote.

On allegations of unlawful interference with voter registration data, the court acknowledged evidence showing that an IEBC registration officer using an open KIEMS kit could alter voter registration details even after the register had been “frozen.” However, the court noted that only one voter was registered after the freeze and ruled that there was no proof the interference was widespread or intended to manipulate the election outcome.

Justice Mwongo further stated that while the isolated alteration of the register could amount to a criminal offence by the officer involved, there was no evidence that the single incident affected the will of the electorate in Mbeere North.

The petition also cited incidents of violence and intimidation at polling stations, particularly in Gitiburi and Kaungu. The court confirmed that violence occurred in those areas, especially at Kaungu, and that voter turnout dropped after the disturbances.

 However, the judge ruled that the violence was neither widespread nor systematic enough to substantially affect the election results.

On allegations of bribery and undue influence, the court found credible evidence from two witnesses suggesting that electoral bribery may have occurred. Justice Mwongo held that the acts complained of could amount to criminal electoral malpractice under Section 87 of the Elections Act. Despite this finding, the court maintained that there was no evidence demonstrating that the malpractice significantly altered the final vote.

The court also examined allegations relating to broken chain of custody and mishandling of election materials. While irregularities were identified at Gitiburi polling stations, the judge ruled that there was no evidence that votes were tampered with or that the irregularities were substantial enough to invalidate the election.

Claims that state resources and public officers were used to improperly influence voters equally failed. The court found that although names of public officers had been mentioned, the petitioner failed to provide evidence of their official roles, the alleged abuse of office, or how such actions influenced voters and affected the election outcome.

The scrutiny exercise conducted during the case also revealed inconsistencies between Forms 35A and 35B amounting to a ten-vote difference. However, the court described the discrepancies as clerical mistakes arising from translocation errors rather than evidence of fraud or manipulation. The judge noted that scrutiny of overwritten forms did not reveal any major discrepancies.

One of the most striking findings in the judgment related to assisted voters. The court established that Regulation 72(6) of the Elections (General) Regulations had been violated because over 1,000 assisted voters were not properly recorded in the physical registers, KIEMS records, or polling station diaries. Additionally, six individuals were found to have assisted more than one voter contrary to the law.

Despite these findings, the court ruled that the assisted voter evidence had emerged during scrutiny and had not been specifically pleaded in the petition. Justice Mwongo therefore held that the court could not rely on that evidence to invalidate the election.

The court capped the costs of the petition at KSh 4 million, with the IEBC and the first three respondents entitled to 70 percent of the costs while Leo Wa Muthende, the fourth respondent, would receive 30 percent. The judgment also directed that criminal aspects identified during the proceedings, including unlawful alteration of the register and double assistance of voters, be forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions for further action.

The petitioner Newton Kariuki Ndwiga through his lawyer Ndegwa Njiru said he will make an appeal over the judgement.

"We will be moving to the court of appeal,"Njiru said.

Wamuthende on his side said the win was for the people of Mbeere North who stood in line to vote. He said he was ready to defend his win even in the Court of Appeal.

‎By JOHN MUSEMBI

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The maximum temperature across the county will vary between 26°C and 35°C while the. minimum temperature range is expected to be between 15°C and 23°C in the next one week.

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‎As has been happening before, strong winds will blow at a speed of around 25knots in most parts of the County.

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‎Residents have been advised to get in touch with extension officers from their localities for best advice on farm practices to use in light of this weather forecast.

By MUTUA KANYANGE 

  Barely a fortnight after the assembly rejected both the KSh14.3 billion Supplementary Budget II for 2025/2026 fiscal year and KSh13.78 billion 2026/27 financial budget estimates, Dr Malombe maintained he would not back down and questioned why the Speaker Kevin Kinengo was allegedly advancing witch-hunt against his leadership. 

  Malombe accused the assembly of being disgraceful and dishonest in its attempt to paralyse the county and derail service delivery to people at the tail end of his tenure in office.

 The governor accused the speaker and a section of his allied MCAs of undermining his government after he re-channeled money for construction of ward offices to build and complete Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) classrooms in various wards.

 Speaking at Lundi market and Yumbu health dispensary in Mui ward, Mwingi East Sub County during commissioning of KSh17 million Kaki-Kilali sumpwell water supply project and maternity wing respectively on May 15, 2026, the governor said the resolution by the assembly was unacceptable and would result in political and service delivery fallout.

 Malombe who was accompanied by his deputy Augustine Kanani, said his administration would not let the Speaker and a section of allied MCAs to cause destruction and ruin his leadership by playing partisan politics within and outside the assembly chambers for financial and egocentric interests.

  “Our stand as county government is that we won’t be shaken, intimidated or coerced by forces within or outside the assembly to lose focus and divert our attention in changing the livelihoods of residents between now and the 2027 General Elections. ‘The Kitui Promise’ in the 16-agenda development map shall be accomplished. No ifs, no buts,” Malombe said.

 County ministers Peter Kilonzo (Finance), Mbaya Kimwele (Agriculture) John Mwendandu (Environment) and Reuben Itiko (Roads) said it was laughable for the assembly with majority of youthful MCAs including the speaker to try to gag the Executive from political involvement.

  Kilonzo who was backed by chief officers, Stephen Salee (Decentralisation), Aggrey Kamba (Drugs), Lynn Kitwan (Public Health) and John Makau (Finance) told the assembly to shut up, maintaining the county executive committee members would not shy away from playing "constructive politics" to champion for Malombe’s achievements since 2022 and rallying the residents behind his leadership in accelerating development projects and improve public service delivery.

 “We are in politics to stay. Let them stop vomiting their dirt in public. We won’t buy their threats and demands,” Kilonzo said.

  This comes after the assembly condemned the involvement of some county officers in active politics, warning that such conduct was unlawful and contrary to the principles of public service neutrality.

 Reacting to the Speaker's communication during a plenary sitting, the MCAs questioned why some officers were allegedly engaging in early campaigns, terming the conduct a breach of law and public trust. They demanded that any such officers immediately desist or face exposure on the floor of the House.

 Speaker Kinengo cited key legal provisions governing the conduct of public officers, including Article 75(1) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010, which provides that public officers shall behave in a manner that avoids conflict between personal interests and public duties, and shall not engage in activities that compromise political neutrality.

  Section 23 of the Leadership and Integrity Act, 2012,  prohibits State and public officers from engaging in political activities that may compromise their impartiality or the performance of their official duties.

  The county assembly recommended that the Committee on Labour and Social Service to investigate the matter and oversight the County Public Service Board and report to the House within two months, all sectoral committees to investigate the conduct of county executive committee members and oversight all county executive departments and report to the House on any instances of partisan political conduct inconsistent with the constitutional and statutory requirements within two months.

 The Speaker emphasised that public office must remain politically neutral, and warned against any conduct that undermines professionalism and service delivery.

By BRIAN MUSYOKA 

The demonstrations, which were organized to push the government to lower fuel prices, turned chaotic as groups of youths engaged police officers in running battles within the town.

During the protests, suspected criminals allegedly took advantage of the unrest and stormed the government food stores before escaping with relief supplies.

Mbeere South Subcounty Police Commander Ashford Kimoti confirmed the incident, saying security officers responded swiftly after receiving reports of the break-in.

Kimoti said officers managed to recover and return some of the bags of rice that had already been removed from the stores by the protesters.

However, he noted that the suspects escaped with several bags of beans before police could fully contain the situation.

"Its true the thugs that infiltrated the demonstrations have broken into a store which was storing relief food,they made away with bags of beans but ,some bags of rice which they had removed from the store we were able to return.We are persuing them to face law," he confirmed.

The police commander said the demonstrations had been infiltrated by thugs who used the protests as an opportunity to loot and destroy property. He added that although citizens have a constitutional right to demonstrate peacefully, criminal acts such as theft and vandalism would not be tolerated.

Kimoti said the stolen food supplies were part of a relief programme aimed at supporting residents affected by hunger and prolonged dry conditions in parts of the area. He assured residents that investigations into the incident had already commenced and detectives were pursuing those involved.

The police boss warned that anyone found culpable would face the full force of the law regardless of their involvement in the demonstrations.

Residents expressed concern over the incident, saying the looted food was meant to assist vulnerable families struggling with food shortages.

Security officers have since intensified patrols in Kiritiri Town and surrounding areas as investigations continue and authorities work to restore calm.

By MWINGI TIMES CORRESPONDENT 

This wa revealed by Interior and National Administration PS Raymond Omollo who appeared before the National Assembly Committee on Administration and Internal Security during the scrutiny of the 2016/2027 budget estimates.  About 110,000 village elders will benefit from this stipend.

The Ministry of Interior and National Administration was reported to have developed a policy framework and criteria for selecting village elders. PS Omollo said this was a culmination of years of consultations and public participation among stakeholders. 

"The conversation about village elders began in 2016 and the House actually gave directions to the Ministry of Interior.  It has taken almost 10 years to get us here", said Dr Omollo.

The Interior PS thanked the committee for supporting the allocation of budget to support village elders in delivering on their mandate. The proposal stipulates that each village elder will earn Sh3,000 after 30 days  starting from the next financial year. This proposal is subject to approval from Parliament. 

"Our expectation is that we will be giving a stipend of Sh3,000 to each village elders and the amount that has been provisioned for will be almost enough to take us through the whole year", he said.

PS Omollo further stated that the said village elders will not be beneficiaries of existing State support programmes like safety net schemes for the elderly or the community health promoter initiatives.

MPs sitting in the committee,  however,  proposed that village elders should be paid more than the Sh3,000 stipend allocated. Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo is the chairman of the committee.  He said given the expected responsibilities of village elders,  they should receive higher stipend similar to what Community Health Promoters get. "We had nothing before but may be we should have them at par with the community health promoters", said Hon Tongoyo.

The lawmakers welcomed the initiative given it was the first formal government effort to recognise and facilitate village elders.  The elders have worked voluntarily for years helping chiefs and assistant chiefs in local administration and security affairs.