A petition has been filed before the High Court seeking to stop the upcoming elections of the Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK) scheduled for March 23, 2026. This is after claims by an Engineer, that the electoral framework used by the professional body is discriminatory and unconstitutional.
Graduate engineer Sam Aberi has moved to court under a certificate of urgency seeking conservatory orders to suspend the elections and any related preparatory activities. This is until a constitutional challenge against the IEK Constitution 2015 is heard and determined.
In the petition, Aberi argues that the elections are being conducted under provisions of the IEK Constitution 2015 that allegedly violate the Constitution of Kenya and the principles of natural justice.
Additionaly, Aberi who describes himself as a registered graduate engineer, claims that although all members are required to pay subscription fees, only specific categories of membership are allowed to participate in electing officials.
According to the petition, Fellows, Corporate Members and Associate Members are permitted to vote and take part in governance matters within the institution. However, graduate members are excluded from participating in the electoral process despite contributing membership fees.
The petitioner contends that the exclusion of graduate members from voting amounts to discrimination and is arbitrary, unreasonable and inconsistent with constitutional principles of equality and fairness.
He further challenges several provisions of the IEK Constitution 2015, including sections 9.02, 9.10, 9.12, 11.05, 11.06 and 12.06, which he claims are inconsistent with the Constitution of Kenya.
Court documents indicate that the institution has already initiated preparations for the elections by inviting expressions of interest for vacant positions and appointing scrutineers to oversee the voting process.
However, Aberi argues that allowing the elections to proceed under the contested constitutional framework would render the petition futile since the disputed process would already have taken place.
He maintains that unless the High Court intervenes and halts the elections, graduate members will continue to be excluded from participating in the institution’s governance. This is despite paying membership subscriptions.
The petitioner also states that the High Court has the mandate to interpret constitutional questions and should intervene to prevent what he describes as an impending constitutional crisis within the institution.
Through the urgent application, Aberi is seeking orders barring the respondents and their agents from proceeding with the elections scheduled for March 23, 2026, or undertaking any preparatory electoral activities until the petition is heard and determined.
