The United Green Movement (UGM) has strongly rejected allegations that its presidential flagbearer, former Chief Justice David Maraga, sidelined women after sexual harassment complaints emerged within his campaign team.
The response follows accusations by activist and former campaign staffer Shakira Wafula, who questioned Maraga's commitment to women's rights and safety after he joined the End Femicide demonstrations held in Nairobi on June 1.
In a detailed statement released on June 3, UGM Secretary General Katto Wambui outlined the party's account of events dating back to October 2025, maintaining that Maraga was not the subject of the allegations and that the complaints were handled through the party's internal processes.
According to the statement, Wafula joined Maraga's exploratory presidential campaign as Secretary of the Political Committee but resigned on October 2, 2025, shortly after Maraga formally joined the United Green Movement.
UGM says that on October 11, 2025, Wafula and two other women raised allegations of sexual harassment against a senior member of the campaign during a virtual meeting with campaign officials.
The party stated that a follow-up meeting was arranged after the complainants requested the presence of two additional campaign members. However, due to scheduling challenges, the meeting was eventually held on October 16.
According to UGM, the complainants were advised to formally document their allegations and indicate whether they intended to pursue legal action, as required under the party's constitution and disciplinary procedures.
The party claims the women did not immediately submit written complaints and instead requested a meeting with Maraga while also demanding the suspension of the accused official before any hearing could take place.
Several weeks later, the three women submitted a joint complaint alleging incidents of sexual harassment that reportedly occurred between June and August 2025.
UGM says an internal disciplinary process was subsequently initiated. However, the party alleges that Wafula failed to appear before the disciplinary committee to present evidence supporting her claims and instead opted to resign from the campaign.
According to the party, the committee later concluded that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations and shared its findings with all relevant parties, including Wafula.
"It is therefore malicious, unfair, dishonest and misdirected for Ms. Shakira Wafula to attempt to publicly malign and soil the character of the Hon. Chief Justice Emeritus, having refused to participate in the internal due process or pursue other legal options as she was advised to do since October 11, 2025," part of the UGM statement read.
The party also defended Maraga's participation in the June 1 End Femicide demonstrations, describing his presence at the event as consistent with his long-standing support for justice and human rights
Wafula had earlier criticized Maraga's attendance at the protests, stating: "Maraga arriving at the matriarchs' grief sit-down with flowers and a clear desire to command attention is deeply distasteful. Coming from someone whose campaign sidelined women after mishandling sexual harassment allegations, the optics are particularly troubling."
UGM maintains that the allegations are being misrepresented in the public domain and insists that the matter was handled through established internal procedures.
The controversy has nevertheless reignited public debate about how political parties address sexual harassment complaints, the effectiveness of internal disciplinary mechanisms, and the accountability of senior political figures.
The issue also sparked mixed reactions online.
One user, @Shadow Seen, wrote, "Classic political damage control. You can't separate the presidential candidate from the rot within his own campaign secretariat."
Another, @Devidz Osamugel Jr., commented, "Just imagine how dirty politics could be..."