Rachier hits back at Sports Registrar after fresh elections directive

Earlier on Friday, Wasike threw the spanner in the works after she issued a directive ordering the club to immediately announce fresh elections, declaring that Rachier’s eight-year term under the Sports Act officially lapsed at midnight on June 8, 2026.

In an explosive demand letter dated June 12, 2026, Rachier’s legal team demanded the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of her directive, terming it as an "unlawful, unconstitutional, biased and procedurally unfair exercise of statutory power".

The long-serving football administrator directly dismantled Wasike’s calculation that his eight-year tenure had expired on June 8, 2026.

His legal team argue that counting his term from the club's initial 2018 registration date is legally unsustainable.

According to the letter, the club did not hold elections immediately in 2018 because the Registrar’s office required Gor Mahia to first review, amend, and align its constitution with national laws.

The process, they say, was undertaken with the Registrar's full participation and approval, culminating in the adoption of the club constitution in 2019.

The core of this argument rests on the principle of legitimate expectation and the Registrar’s past actions. The reaction points out that the first official election under the aligned constitution took place on August 8, 2020.

Following subsequent orders from the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT), fresh elections were held on April 13, 2025 , after which Rachier alleges Wasike’s office formally recognized and registered the elected officials via a letter dated May 14, 2025.

“You cannot participate in a Tribunal-supervised electoral process, acquiesce to its outcome, register the successful candidates, and thereafter purport to retrospectively disqualify one of the persons whose election you formally recognized.

“Such conduct is irrational, unreasonable, arbitrary and constitutes a clear abuse of statutory power. It further violates the doctrine of legitimate expectation, offends Article 47 of the Constitution and is amenable to judicial review on grounds of illegality, irrationality and procedural impropriety.

“Equally troubling is the selective manner in which your office has chosen to exercise its powers,” said Rachier.

Under Regulation 20(6) of the Sports Registrar Regulations, newly elected office bearers are entitled to a full four-year term.

Rachier’s team firmly maintains that by registering him in 2025, a legal four-year mandate attached to his office by operation of law, meaning his current term legally runs until 2029.

He argues that the Sports Registrar has absolutely "no authority to rewrite Regulation 20(6) or substitute the clear provisions of the law with a personal interpretation".

“The persistent focus on our Client, notwithstanding the history of your office's engagement with the Club and your prior recognition of the election outcome, raises serious concerns regarding objectivity, impartiality and the existence of a predetermined agenda.”

Furthermore, the legal team notes that the Registrar’s remarks labelling Rachier’s leadership as a display of "negligence, poor leadership and bad governance" were made arbitrarily.

They note these damaging conclusions were reached "without notice, without investigation, without disclosure of any complaint, and without affording our Client or any affected official an opportunity to be heard," violating basic rules of natural justice and Article 47 of the Constitution of Kenya.

The ball has now been kicked back to the Ministry of Sports, with an aggressive judicial threat. Rachier’s advocates have demanded not only the immediate withdrawal of the directive but also a written confirmation that no adverse administrative actions will be taken against the Chairman.

“Take notice that unless this is done immediately, Rachier shall institute high-court proceedings seeking orders of, without further reference to your office."

“A refusal to compromise by the Ministry could plunge Kenya's most decorated football club into a destructive legal dispute, threatening to disrupt team management during a critical period as they eye preparations for CAF Champions League.”