High Court Judge Lawrence Mugambi has declined to stop a petition seeking to block the planned opposition-led protests scheduled for Wednesday to Friday.
In a ruling, Justice Mugambi directed the petitioners to instead serve the respondents with the petition within 3 days and responses to the petition and application be filed within 10 days.
“I have read the petition and notice of motion application dated 17th July, 2023 together with the Certificate of Urgency and hereby direct as follows: Let the Application and the Petition be served within the next 3 days. 2. Responses to the petition and the Application be filed within 1o days. Further documentation/replying affidavit by the Petitioner be filed and served within 10 days,” Mugambi directed.
The matter filed under a certificate of urgency will be mentioned for further directions on September 21.
The petitioner, Martin Gitau through his lawyer Adrian Kamotho, argued the demonstrations were negatively affecting the economy and paralyzing emergency services.
Additionally, he sought to have the court bar Azimio allied parties from accessing funds from the political parties’ fund kitty.
Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition has insisted that the demonstrations will go on as planned and called upon Kenyans to turn out in large numbers.
Addressing the media on Monday, National Assembly Minority leader Opiyo Wandayi affirmed their decision to stand in solidarity with Kenyans to protest for three consecutive days this week against high cost of living.
Azimio has affirmed that the planned countrywide people’s peaceful demonstrations scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week are on and called on Kenyans to turn out in large numbers to demand for their rights,” MP Opiyo Wandayi has said.
The Opposition has called for the protests to agitate for a review of the Finance Act 2023 and the high cost of living.
Their statement Monday comes after Kikuyu MP claimed that Azimio leader Raila Odinga is stoking a political crisis to force a handshake settlement.
Ichungwa said that Odinga’s desire is to create a backdoor through mayhem and anarchy to sabotage a legitimately elected government through its anti-government protests.
“The truth is these protests are a product of a refusal to accept reality and the desire to backdoor a way into government.
The intention is to flout the law, the design is to cause chaos and make businesses suffer in the false hope that this will cause a power sharing arrangement,” the Kikuyu legislator said.
He said the intended result of the Azimio la Umoja led protests were not about the cost of living but about Raila Odinga’s fifth loss at the Presidential election.
“The Government is addressing the issue of the cost of living but these demonstrations are not about that, they are about Odinga’s bitterness at losing an election for the fifth consecutive time,” MP Ichung’wa noted