Centre for Public Policy and Research moves court seeking to overturn COTU elections

Veteran trade unionist Francis Atwoli re-elected unopposed as the Secretary General of the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Kenya) during a delegates meeting held at the Tom Mboya Labour College in Kisumu/FAITH MATETE

A fresh legal battle has emerged over the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) elections after a petitioner moved to the High Court in Kerugoya seeking to overturn the trade union election process.

Court documents show that the Centre for Public Policy and Research filed a judicial review application against the Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection, the Registrar of Trade Unions, the Central Organisation of Trade Unions, and the Attorney General.

Francis Atwoli was re-elected unopposed as the Secretary-General of the union for a sixth consecutive term.

The organisation seeks urgent intervention to halt and overturn the election that was held in Kisumu.

"That certiorari be and is hereby issued quashing the election of the first Interested Party ( Francis Atwoli), together with any other person purportedly elected as officials of the Central Organisation of Trade Unions Kenya (COTU-K) on 14th March 2026 during the 15th Quinquennial Governing Council Delegates Conference and Elections held at Tom Mboya Labour College, Kisumu," the petition states.

According to the certificate of urgency filed at the High Court in Kerugoya, the applicant argues that the matter arose from what it described as a crisis raised by the Registrar of Trade Unions concerning the trade union election cycle of 2025, which was communicated through a directive dated September 25, 2025. 

In their arguments, they say the Registrar set the 2026 union election timeline, requiring branch elections by March 31 and national elections from April to June, with COTU elections by August 30.

"That despite the foregoing, the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Kenya) (COTU-K) prematurely conducted its elections and announced officials on 14th March 2026, well before its affiliate unions had held their branch and national elections, and even before the official national election period (I st April to 30th June 2026) had begun," they state.

The petitioner alleges that the subsequent actions surrounding the election process were unlawful and threatened the integrity of trade union leadership structures in the country.

The application has listed long-serving COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli among interested parties, alongside the Trade Union Congress, the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU), and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET).

In the court papers, the applicant seeks judicial review orders to quash the decisions and directives issued by the Registrar of Trade Unions related to the COTU election cycle. 

The center has also asked the court to prohibit the respondents from implementing or enforcing the disputed directives and to compel relevant authorities to act in accordance with the law governing trade union elections.

The applicant further urged the court to grant interim orders staying the implementation of the contested election process pending the hearing and determination of the case.

In its documents, it argues that failure to intervene would result in irreparable damage to the governance of trade unions and undermine transparency in labour leadership elections.

According to the filed documents, the matter was presented as urgent due to the potential impact on national labour structures and the risk of disputed leadership taking office before the legality of the election process is determined. 

The petitioner maintained that the court’s intervention was necessary to safeguard constitutional principles, including fair administrative action, transparency, and accountability in public and institutional decision-making.

The case now places the spotlight on the management of trade union elections.

The High Court is expected to give directions on the matter.