Scores arrested as Coast joins anti-IEBC demonstrations

Junda MCA Paul Onje being escorted in a police car after he was arrested during CORD'S demonstration to push for the removal of IEBC in Mombasa County on Monday 23rd May 2016. The demo is expected to take place again on Monday next week. (PHOTO: KEVIN KARANI/ STANDARD)

Scores of protesters were arrested as police broke up Opposition demonstrations against the electoral commission in Mombasa yesterday.

Mombasa Officer Commanding Police Division Lucas Ogara told The Standard those arrested included Mombasa County Assembly Speaker Thadius Rajwayi and Junda MCA Paul Onje.

Mr Ogara said the people were arrested as “deterrence” and also because “the demonstrators did not notify us about the demonstrations”.

Local leaders led by Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho accused police of victimising innocent people “yet the demonstration in Mombasa was very peaceful”.

Crowds that gathered at Uhuru Gardens as early as 8am following calls by Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka and Joho were met by a wall of anti-riot police and prison warders, who ringed the venue and barricaded main streets with trucks.

It was the first anti-Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) demonstration in Mombasa since CORD announced its campaign against it last month. Scores were injured in stampedes as effects of teargas spread into buildings across the central business district (CBD).

First wave

A second group of demonstrators was blocked on the Nyali Bridge by dozens of police. Several MPs including Changamwe’s Omar Mwinyi were caught up in the first wave of teargas.

The demonstrators, who were carrying banners and chanting anti-IEBC slogans, later regrouped and tried to march on the streets towards Uhuru Gardens but were forced back as police fired more teargas. Most businesses in the central business district remained shut for the better part of the day.

At about 10am thousands of Opposition supporters made their way to the CBD from different directions and gathered on Moi Avenue where Joho and other leaders addressed supporters before leading demonstrators to IEBC offices, opposite Mombasa’s Central Police Station where Rajwayi, Onje and other demonstrators were being held.

Submit petition

“We’ll maintain peace as we head to IEBC offices to submit our petition against the IEBC. We have no problem with anyone and we can assure you we’ll be peaceful,” said Joho.

It was not immediately clear why Rajwayi and Onje were arrested, but journalists saw police accost and bundle them into trucks. Rajwayi had earlier arrived outside Uhuru Gardens with a group of supporters chanting anti-IEBC slogans.

Last evening Joho and MPs Abdulswamad Nassir (Mvita), Rashid Bedzimb (Kisauni), Mishi Mboko (Woman Rep), William Kamoti (Rabai) and Badi Twalib (Jomvu) went to Central Police Station seeking the release of the detainees.

Rajwayi was arrested after he tried to address the leader of the police squad surrounding the garden.

“They’ve agreed they don’t want us here at Uhuru Gardens... so we’re heading to IEBC offices,” said Rajwayi.

As the demonstrators appeared to surge police lobbed teargas canisters at them and they scattered in different directions.

Joho said they were expressing their constitutional rights, adding that their demands for electoral reform were genuine and would be sustained until the desired changes are achieved.

“We do not expect police to declare war on citizens. We have tried to talk to the police boss but he has told us he is not ready to discuss anything with us,” he said.

Displeasure

Joho said the Opposition was ready to hold sit ins and pickets for a year until the government and IEBC agree to reform the electoral system.

“We’re here to express our displeasure at IEBC. We’re not here to mug anyone. That’s why we are asking police to escort us to IEBC office...If you prevent us from accessing the offices, we might decide to camp at IEBC offices for a full year,” said the governor.

Mr Nassir accused police of using unreasonable force on demonstrators who were only exercising their democratic right.

“Mombasa is a town of peace and we ask our supporters to be peaceful. But we also want space to exercise our democratic right,” said Nassir.

Mr Twalib said CORD leaders were ready to continue with demonstrations to remove the poll body from office.

“We’re ready to be tear-gassed with our supporters. We’re ready to continue with protests even if it means picketing for a whole year to have the current IEBC officials removed from office,” said Twalib.

Ms Mboko, donning Firimbi movement beret, said the poll body had already taken a position hence the need to disband it. 

“We don’t want a recurrence of the 2007 chaos and that’s why we are maintaining that IEBC must go,” said Kamote.

The demonstrators then moved to Mvita sub-county IEBC offices where they presented their petition.

Speaking at his office in Kizingo, Joho said he had spoken to County Police Commander Wanjohi Mwangi who promised to release the two arrested leaders. He said the leaders would engage some lawyers to have the two leaders and the youth activists freed.

And Lamu politician Rishad Amana has joined the clamour to have IEBC disbanded.

Mr Amana, who addressed the Press in Mombasa yesterday, said the poll body had lost credibility “by choosing to go against the will of the people” by challenging a court decision to have more electoral wards in Lamu last year.

In September last year, the High Court in Malindi ordered IEBC to create five new wards in Lamu after finding that the county had fewer electoral districts than what the law requires.

Electoral wards

“I will not vie if the referee himself can go to court to challenge the decision of a court to have more electoral wards in Lamu, saying the court is biased towards the people of Lamu,” said the former DP national vice chairman who recently decamped to CORD.

Amana, who is eyeing the Lamu West parliamentary seat, said the opposition would boycott the 2017 polls if a new electoral agency was not put in place.

He accused IEBC of favouring Jubilee and its affiliate parties, adding that a “referee who is not happy with game rules because his preferred team did not win cannot be trusted to referee a match fairly”.

The Malindi High Court last year ruled in Amana’s favour after he challenged the nomination of 10 MCAs in the Lamu county assembly against 10 elected ones. Amana and some Lamu residents said it was not fair to have an equal number of elected and nominated MCAs in the same county assembly. The High Court in Malindi said it was wrong for IEBC to allow the nomination of 10 MCAs and asked it to create five more electoral wards.