A House committee has proposed significant constitutional amendments to improve election procedures, including an extension of the timeline for hearing presidential election petitions.
In its report to the National Assembly, the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) supported a Judiciary request to extend the Supreme Court’s timeframe for resolving presidential election disputes from 14 to 21 days.
This extension, the committee suggested, should be approved through a resolution by a majority in the National Assembly and in the Senate’s county delegations.
The committee also recommended granting Parliament the authority to determine when to review electoral boundaries and rename constituencies, offering more flexibility in decision-making. Additionally, the JLAC backed a proposal to amend constitutional guidelines, mandating that the IEBC chairperson can only declare presidential election results after the commission’s verification.
This approach aligns with recent court rulings that commission decisions must reflect a majority consensus rather than the views of individual members.
“Noting the distinction between an independent office and a commission, the Committee observed that the proposal is in line with the court’s finding that decisions of a Commission must be made by the absolute majority and not individual members,” the report states.
While recognizing the IEBC’s track record in promptly resolving electoral disputes, the committee highlighted that the Political Parties Act already assigns dispute resolution authority to the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal.
This Act provides a structured appeals process, allowing cases to proceed from the High Court to the Court of Appeal on legal grounds, with the latter’s decisions deemed final.
