six polling centres relocated in Kibra polls

Six polling centres selected for the upcoming Kibra by-election have been relocated to avoid interfering with the KCSE national examinations.

Returning Officer Beatrice Muli yesterday said that voters should be aware of the changes to avoid confusion.

“We have already gazetted to relocate these stations to places that do not have exams and areas we felt are conducive for voting,” Ms Muli said.

The officer, who was speaking during a briefing on how the poll body has prepared for the by-election, said the changes had been done after consulting with the candidates, opinion leaders and the Ministry of Education.

Raila Education Centre, which has five polling stations, is one of the affected centres. The stations have been relocated to Old Kibera Primary School.

Upper Hill High School, which had three polling stations, has been relocated to Kilimanjaro Avenue off Mara Road.

Mbagathi Road Primary School, with seven polling stations, has been moved to Kenyatta Market parking lot.

Shadrack Kimalel, with six polling stations, has been moved to Golf Course estate playing ground.

Olympic primary and secondary schools, with 12 and nine stations respectively, have been moved to Ayany Primary School.

“The commission has taken a further step of informing voters of the relocation by putting banners in these stations where we have relocated from. I hope our voters will read and appreciate the relocation,” Muli said.

The officer said the number of polling stations was up from 180 to 183 because of an increase in the number of voters.

“There have been 383 new voters in Kibra since 2017, where 333 were new registrations and 50 requested for transfers,” she said.

Kibra has 118,658 registered voters. The mini-poll that is scheduled for November 7 will be overseen by 188 presiding officers and 625 clerks.