KENYA HIGH COURT REINSTATES KENYATTA AS KANU CHIEF

C O N F I D E N T I A L NAIROBI 005390 SIPDIS SIPDIS LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/28/2026 TAGS: KDEM PGOV PREL KE SUBJECT: KENYA HIGH COURT REINSTATES KENYATTA AS KANU CHIEF REF: A. NAIROBI 5214 ¶B. NAIROBI 5129 ¶C. NAIROBI 5099 Classified By: Political Counselor Larry Andre for reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: On December 28, Kenya's High Court ruled in favor of ousted KANU party Chairman Uhuru Kenyatta restoring him as the party's leader and allowing his court case against the registration of a rival slate of party officers to go forward. The decision, a surprise to Kenyatta supporters, questioned the legitimacy of the registration of the competing slate of officers. The ruling was as much a victory for judicial independence as for Kenyatta, especially since government critics alleged a State House hand in the KANU party shake-up. END SUMMARY. BIWOTT SMACKED DOWN -------------- ¶2. (SBU) In a welcome but unexpected ruling, Kenya's High Court reinstated ousted Chairman Uhuru Kenyatta, affirming the legitimacy of his leadership of the KANU party. In its decision, the court determined that Kenyatta's case disputing the registration of a rival slate of party officers could indeed be heard. In the meantime, Kenyatta and his supporters can resume their former positions and control of the party's finances, removing the break-away KANU members who took their place in a late November coup. In that takeover, MP Nicholas Biwott, the symbol of Moi-era corruption and brutality, and a few of his backers called a delegates' meeting at which they were elected as the party's leadership. Days later the Registrar of Societies, a government appointed official, registered the new officers, officially ousting Kenyatta amid suspicions of a government hand in the matter (refs B and C). ¶3. (C) Taking their case to court was not how Kenyatta wanted to fight Biwott, but when their street protests were met with tear gas, and their attempts to meet the registrar herself were thwarted, he had no other choice. At the time of the coup, Opposition Chief Whip and Kenyatta's right-hand man MP Justin Muturi told poloff they feared that while their case challenging the Biwott registration rotted in the severely congested judicial system, the Biwott slate would be allowed to stand. Early on December 28, waiting for the ruling, Muturi expressed his concern to poloff that court officials might be susceptible to interference. SETTING THE SYSTEM STRAIGHT -------------- ¶4. (U) In her ruling, the judge castigated the Registrar of Societies for not seeking to determine if the Biwott group had been elected in accordance with the KANU constitution before registering the new names. The judge also noted that the Registrar had received KANU's protest letter a day before accepting the Biwott group (as Kenyatta argued at the time). ¶5. (C) COMMENT: While Kenyatta was right to call the decision a victory for multi-party democracy, it is equally a score for an independent judiciary in Kenya. KANU's expectation that the court would be susceptible to executive influence followed naturally from their (likely correct) suspicion that the entire Biwott takeover and subsequent acceptance by the Registrar was the result of orchestration by some members of the government. The December 28 ruling, including its emphasis on the Registrar's dereliction of duty, sets a helpful precedent as the election year begins in three days. END COMMENT. RANNEBERGER