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Vote Tallying for Kitutu Masaba Flawed, Court Told

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Published on Tuesday, 14 June 2011 18:52

A deputy returning officer yesterday told the High Court in Kisii that tallying process of the Kitutu Masaba parliamentary elections was temporarily interrupted after a presiding officer introduced fake results.

Testifying in the case challenging the election of Walter Nyambati, Lumumba Tai said there was commotion at Nyambaria tallying centre when the presiding officer of Nyakamakoroto polling station attempted to sneak in the doctored results.

Tai said the presiding officer tried to present the manipulated the results in favour of former MP Mwancha Nyang'au Okioma to the returning officer Lawrence ole Sempele. "Commotion arose when the presiding officer attempted to sneak in the results but the returning officer noticed," Tai told Justice Milton Makhandia.

Earlier in his sworn in affidavit, Tai denied allegations that the petitioner interfered with the recruitment of officials in the constituency. When asked by Nyambati's lawyer Osoro Mogikoyo whether he in any given time saw the MP engage in un-harmful communication with Sempele, Tai said he did not witness any communication between the two as alleged by the petitioner.

He at the same time denied that there was no given time Johnson Nyandika was employeed as a tallying clerk but informed the court that Nyandika was recruited as presiding officer. "At no time did we recruit Nyandika as atallying clerk. He was recruited as presiding officer," he said.

When asked by IIEC lawyer Fred Orora whether there was any irregularities reported by any candidate among the 33 who contested for the seat, Tai said they never received any complaint and that the elections were conducted in a free and transparent manner. "As far as I am concerned, the Kitutu Masaba parliamentary elections were condunctred in a democratic and transparent manner because I never received any complint as a deputy returning officer," Tai said.

During cross examination by Omiti's lawyer, Amollo Otiende, Tai said that ODM candidate Timothy Bosire among others were in the tally hall contrary to Bosire who during his testimony he never visited the tallying centre at any given time.

When Otiende told him that George Ogwoko was replaced by Sempele after Nyambati complained, Tai said it was not true because anybody was transferable.

He also denied claims by Amollo that he was retained as deputy returning officer becasue Nyambati was confortable with him saying it would not be true because he hailed from a nother constituency.

Tai had difficult to tell the court why they recruiting panel directly recruited Risper Kenani and one Ombwayo as tallying clerks without looking at their qualification.