Registrar of Political Parties sued for declining to register Gen Z party

The Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) has been accused of declining to register an outfit associated with Generation Z youths who have been staging countrywide protests against President William Ruto's administration. 

A city-based lawyer filed a lawsuit against the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP), led by Registrar Anne Nderitu, accusing her of refusing to register the youth-led party.

In an application filed at the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal (PPDT), the lawyer, James Ogenga, wants the court to issue a declaration that the decision by the Nderitu to reject the reservation of the name, Gen Z Party, is discriminatory and unconstitutional. 

In court documents seen by The Eastleigh Voice, Ogenga has challenged the registrar to explain rejecting the party name on the grounds that it does not promote inclusivity.

"The learned registrar misdirected herself by not providing the appellant with her interpretation of the name. She only states that the name does not promote inclusivity. The name could be given a plethora of interpretations, including but not limited to Generation Zote, Generation Zion, General Zod, Gender Z, and General Zeus, among others," he argued. 

"The decision made by the Registrar of Political Parties was made before she saw the list of members, the regions covered by the political party so that she could conclude that the name does not promote inclusivity," he added. 

Protesters fighting the Finance Bill, 2024, are pictured on Moi Avenue in the Nairobi central business district on June 25, 2024. (Photo: Justine Ondieki/EV)

Through the lawyer, the petitioner argued that he filed an application for the reservation of the name Gen-Z Party in accordance with Section 4B of the Political Parties Act on June 24, 2024, and subsequently paid the requisite fees.

However, he explained that he later received a call from the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties and was informed that his application was rejected for lack of inclusivity.

In his view, the petitioner reiterated that the act of the registrar to deny registration of the outfit allied to Gen Zs is unconstitutional and unwarranted.

"The decision of the Registrar of Political Parties goes against the principles enshrined in the constitution, in particular Articles 10, 20(2), 31(3), 27(4), 28, 36, 38, and 232," lawyer Ogenga states in court documents. 

"The Registrar of Political Parties erred in concluding that the name Gen Z does not promote inclusivity, being that there are steps to be complied with in accordance with Sections 5, 6, and 7 of the Political Parties Act before the full registration of a political party," he added. 

According to him, the refusal to register the party should be regarded as premature, discriminatory, and a violation of his political rights.

He pleaded with the tribunal to issue an order quashing the decision of the Registrar of Political Parties in the letter dated July 11, 2024, rejecting the appellant's application.

"That this honourable tribunal do issue an order directing the Registrar of Political Party to issue a letter to the Appellant that the name 'The Gen-Z Party' is duly reserved as of June 24, 2024," the court papers read.