Sonko Off the Hook As High Court clears him to run for Mombasa governor

Uhuru and Sonko

The Mombasa High Court has directed the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to clear former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko to run for the Mombasa gubernatorial seat.

The three-judge panel chaired by Olga Sewe, Stephen Githinji, and Ann Ong’injo determined that Sonko delivered all requisite documentation to the election commission.

The judges also highlighted that Sonko has an appeal pending before the Supreme Court and that he has not exhausted all of his defense options in his impeachment case.

Mike Sonko has been in and out of court to dispute petitions that aimed to prevent him from running for governor of Mombasa on the basis that he was removed from office by the Nairobi County Assembly.

IEBC and its Dispute Resolution Committee (DRC) waged a vigorous legal battle against Sonko’s legal team to demonstrate that Sonko is unable to run for any office.

Sonko’s legal team argued that the IEBC and DRC erred in disqualifying him from standing for governor of Mombasa and pleaded with the court to grant Sonko’s request, allowing him to run.

The court had previously barred the Wiper Party from nominating another candidate pending the outcome of the petition.

Sonko was not on the list of candidates approved by the IEBC to run for various elected seats in the 2022 General Election.

While releasing the names of politicians who were barred on June 4, 2022, Chebukati defended his position of barring Sonko, arguing that he was ousted from office for abuse of public office.

“A person who is removed from office on contravention of Chapter 6 of the Constitution is disqualified from holding office, elective or appointed,” Chebukati said. 

With the latest reprieve Sonko will now face Bollo Hezron Awiti of Vibrant Democratic Party, Hassan Omar of UDA, Jama Amin Ali of PAA, Mwaruwa Abdalla Hemed (Independent), Nzaro Salim Omar (UPIA), Nassir Abdullswamad Sheriff (ODM) and Omari Said Abdalla of Usawa Kwa Wote Party.

Also Read: Sonko Cries Foul, Reveals What The Government Did to His Family a Day After IEBC Disqualification