South Coast branch and Mombasa sub-branch have threatened to go ahead with elections tomorrow based on a circular released earlier even as Football Kenya Federation and the Elections board extended the poll date.
Yesterday, South Coast vice chairman Ismail Ogolla and women representative Asha Pili accompanied by Mombasa sub-branch Treasurer Ally Goshi said plans to conduct the poll have been finalised.
“We do not recognise the change of election dates issued by the Electoral Board as this means there would be a vacuum. We held our last election on October 29, 2011 and our term expires on Thursday,” said South Coast Vice Chairman Ismail Ogolla.
According to Pili, they have not received any official communication from the federation on the postponement of the election dates.
But FKF President Sam Nyamweya warned the region would go ahead with the elections at their peril.
“It is an exercise that has been tasked by the AGM under specific guidelines. The AGM also put in place an elections board, which has been sanctioned by Fifa,” Nyamweya said.
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South Coast and Mombasa sub-branch once considered a hotbed of football wrangles, however, maintain: “We are through with all the arrangements and South Coast affiliates Mombasa, Kaloleni, Taita Taveta and Kwale will hold their election on Thursday with the branch election set for Mombasa on November 5.”
Last Friday, the Independent Elections Board chaired by lawyer Donald Kipkorir issued a revised elections calendar, which named November 26 and not October 29 for the Sub Branch elections.
Branch elections were moved from November 5 to December 3 and national elections from November 13 to December 10 in the new scheduled.
However, FKF felt the Board did not consult them over the dates and yesterday convened a National Executive Committee to deliberate on the matter ahead of a meeting with the Kipkorir-led body today.
“We are more or less agreed with the extension but we have to sit down with the board to agree on exact dates. What was initially put out there were only tentative,” Nyamweya said.
Nyamweya allayed fears of legal implications of delayed elections beyond the term of the current office.
“Fifa is fully briefed after wide consultations together with the top lawyers.
“Even so, according to the constitution the current NEC and president will be in office until newly elected officials are sworn in,” he said.
Aspirant NEC Member for Western Kizito Namulanda urged the Independent Board to release the final nomination rules to allow aspirants be clear that they do qualify for the positions they are vying and paying for.
