IEBC must be accountable and open up its election servers

The Manchester Derby in the UK premier league pits two of Manchester’s finest teams: Manchester United and Manchester City.

When the two teams meet to play in the famous ‘Manchester Derby’, every soccer fan expects that the match day referee will be fair and impartial and that, above all, the referee will make the right calls to ensure the better team wins.

If an opposing player handles the ball deliberately in the box, it should be a penalty. That is the rule of the game.

In Kenya, there is an election rule book. And this is interpreted not just by the Independent Election and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), but by every Kenyan. We all know the do’s and the don’ts. IEBC is our elections arbiter - the referee - charged with the duty of making sure that the electoral process is premised on credibility and fairness.

Fair referee

Why can’t we demand that relative to Kenya’s election, the referee should be not only fair, but be seen to be fair by every reasonable Kenyan? When the Supreme Court nullified the August 8 presidential election, the ruling was an indictment on the IEBC.

With elections set to take place on October 17, one is bound to ask: “Should the same IEBC be trusted with refereeing the re-match?” My answer is yes.

I am a believer in giving second chances. IEBC, as a constitutional body, deserves a second chance to right its wrong. This, though, does not mean blind optimism in IEBC.

It signifies a trust and faith in the ability of human beings to err and make mistakes, but correct them. It almost means that IEBC has to seek forgiveness from Kenyans for the failures and any acts of commission and omission that led to the nullification of the presidential results.

Accountability

To achieve forgiveness from Kenyans, IEBC has to chart a path to accountability. And what is this accountability that we seek from IEBC? Dele Oluwu must have had IEBC and the electoral process in mind when he defined public accountability as the requirement that those who hold public trust should account for the use of the trust to the citizens or their representatives.

In the Supreme Court hearing between Raila Odinga - the petitioner - and IEBC - the second respondent, there was a decree for IEBC to open up its servers for scrutiny and audit by parties mandated by the court.

IEBC did not comply. It has been weeks now since the Supreme Court Ruling and no signs that IEBC will allow the audit of the servers to take place. Why can’t IEBC do the right thing and be accountable to Kenyans? Those servers belong to Kenya and IEBC is holding them in trust for Kenyans.

It leaves a lot to be desired on what could be in those servers that IEBC opted to risk losing a case than obey a court decree to open them up for scrutiny.

IEBC should, therefore, not just give Kenyans an apology for bangling the August 8 election, as deemed by the Supreme Court, Kenyans should be told the truth, and nothing but the truth. There has to be evidence of willingness by the IEBC to be an impartial referee.

Servers

By not opening up the servers, what we are being exposed to is pride. While our country is faced with the Kingsian ‘fierce urgency of the moment’, granted the strict timelines within which the fresh election is to be held, one can only wonder what would be different between the fresh election and the August 8 election, seeing that nothing substantial has changed within IEBC.

There is the issue of the various electoral forms that did not have the designated security features. The country needs to know where these forms came from and at what point they became part of the electoral process. If it happened before, what will prevent this from happening again?

Kenyans, in their everyday struggle underpinned by their hustle and bustle for a shot at a decent life, always strive to be treated fairly and whenever possible, be given a fair shot at all their endeavours.

To this end, these same Kenyans should advocate IEBC to do what is right and ensure that every vote counts and that there is no mischief.

Common destiny

What makes our country great is not the sandy beaches or the magnificent hills and meanders of the Rift Valley. What sets us apart from other Africans is our ability to chart a common destiny guided by our National Anthem, a belief that we are a country created by God, and where justice is our shield and defender. While at it, this is my prayer to Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga:

The country is in your hands. From where I stand, we can de-escalate the now evident stalemate between the parties you represent and IEBC.

Why don’t you two meet with Chebukati and iron out the issues that are likely to impede the realisation of a free and fair election?

Mr Muriuki is a partner in MBS Conflict Resolution Group based in [email protected]