Wanjigi responds to critic seeking to block his State House bid
Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) presidential aspirant Jimi Wanjigi has said the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal has no jurisdiction to determine a case filed by a Nyeri politician opposing his State House quest.
“The applicant has not exhausted the internal party dispute resolution mechanisms,” Mr Wanjigi argues.
Catherine Wanjiku Irungu wants to compel ODM to take action against Mr Wanjigi for declaring his presidential bid without following internal procedures.
Ms Irungu, an ODM life member, also wants the party to discipline the businessman for using his campaigns to attack and criticise party leader Raila Odinga.
She also wants to stop Mr Wanjigi from contesting in the party’s electoral processes, convening any meeting or transacting any business on behalf of the party.
She questions the authenticity of Mr Wanjigi’s membership in ODM.
Ms Irungu claims Mr Wanjigi’s life membership application was neither presented to nor approved by a properly convened National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting as required by the party’s constitution.
“ODM has not ensured that Wanjigi has completed the constitutionally entrenched temporal requirements for membership before announcing (his) candidature and embarking on campaigns,” says Ms Irungu, who vied for the Mathira parliamentary seat as independent candidate in 2017.
She wants the tribunal to order ODM to produce the minutes that led to NEC’s decision to award Mr Wanjigi with the party membership and his ethics and integrity report.
She is also aggrieved that ODM has failed to enforce the provisions of its own constitution and rules, arguing that the businessman has not been disciplined for “undermining the authority of the party by opening parallel offices even when instructed to stop”.
“ODM has failed or ignored to enforce its constitution by failing to discipline Wanjigi for announcing (his) candidature and campaigning for electoral positions on the party ticket without qualifying for the same,” the complaint says.
Ms Irungu also claims that ODM has permitted strangers to form opinions, run with its agenda and abuse its structures. She says these actions have sabotaged its integrity and confused its members.
The tribunal, chaired by Desma Nungo, last Thursday certified the petition as urgent and directed Mr Wanjigi to respond to the petitioner within seven days. BY DAILY NATION
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