Court to rule on Ruth Odinga IEBC case next week

A court will next week decide whether Kisumu Senator Fred Outa and ex-Deputy Governor Ruth Odinga will face criminal charges in Kisumu or Busia.

The two are charged with malicious damage of property and disruption of an Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission (IEBC) training session in Kisumu last year.

Chief Magistrate Julius Ng’arng’ar said the determination of the case which involves three other suspects will be made on May 29.

This follows an application by the Witness Protection Agency (WPA) seeking to have the case transferred to Busia.

Two months ago, the WPA applied to the High Court seeking to transfer the case to a different location citing that they feared for the security of witnesses lined up to testify in the case.

The duo’s lawyer Geoffrey Yogo however maintained that the decision to transfer the case to a court outside Kisumu is unconstitutional and unfair.

Yogo argues that the matter should be heard at a court nearest to the place where the alleged crimes took place; which is Kisumu.

According to him, the two clients read mischief in the move and it raises questions about the credibility of the prosecution witnesses.

State Prosecutor Jacinta Nyamosi however argued that allowing the case to be heard in Kisumu may jeopardize the security of the witnesses as most of them are residents of the city.