Kenyan court nullifies election win

Presidential vote to be held again after fraud cited

NAIROBI • Kenya’s president, Uhuru Kenyatta, denounced the country’s supreme court judges as “crooks in the pay of whites” Friday after it struck a stunning blow for judicial independence in Africa by nullifying his re-election.

Ruling that Kenyatta’s victory in the Aug. 8 vote was marred by “irregularities and illegalities,” the court ordered a fresh vote to be held within 60 days, the first time judges have ever overturned an incumbent president’s victory in an African election.

Robed in red and black, the six judges on the bench upheld a petition by Kenyatta’s challenger, Raila Odinga, whose claim that systematic fraud had denied him victory was ridiculed by Western observers, who portrayed him as a sore loser.

The loser of four elections, all of them tarnished by allegations of impropriety, Odinga was in court to savour his moment of triumph, allowing himself a smile as the chief justice, David Maraga, delivered his momentous ruling.

“The presidential election ... was not conducted in accordance with the constitution and applicable law, rendering the results invalid, null and void,” Maraga told the courtroom, as he read out the four-to-two majority ruling.

Outside the building, as in slums across the capital Nairobi and in Odinga’s strongholds in western Kenya, the crowds erupted in disbelieving joy.

Three weeks ago, many of the same people had run for their lives as police used live fire to crush protests triggered by the electoral commission’s official declaration of Kenyatta’s victory.

At least 28 people were killed by the police, including a six-month old baby beaten into a coma from which she never recovered and a teenager hauled out from under his bed and bludgeoned to death in front of his parents.

But yesterday the police seemed bewildered and unsure of themselves, briefly advancing on jubilant opposition supporters, before retreating.

“People are just so, so happy,” said Dorothy Mwangale, a cleaner, beaming uncontrollably, tears in her eyes.

The mood was in stark contrast to the sullen silence of the president’s supporters, who had also gathered publicly to celebrate what they believed would be confirmation of his victory. The disbelief was also etched on the president’s face.

Although he agreed to respect the ruling, Kenyatta also upbraided the court saying: “Six people decided to go against the will of the people.”

The court absolved the president of any involvement in any electoral fraud, laying the blame on the electoral commission for the opaque manner in which it conducted the count.