Chebukati rejects call to resign and disband IEBC

IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati at the National Tallying Centre, Bomas on 28th October 2017. [photo/Wilberforce Okwiri/Standard]

Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Wafula Chebukati has rejected a call by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) Executive Director David Kegoro to resign and disband the Commission over its conduct in the August and October elections.

Kegoro on Wednesday said IEBC and its secretariat should be disbanded before the next election to pave way for discussions on how to formulate a new independent electorate body.

He said the leadership of IEBC secretariat needs to be reformed and for that to happen the leaders need to go.

Kegoro said IEBC chairman and his team need to prepare for a transition from office to allow Kenyans deliberate a way forward in formulating a new electoral body.

Speaking during the Annual Jurist Conference in Mombasa, Kegoro said IEBC failed to manage their internal affairs where they were in charge and resulted to nullification of presidential results by the Supreme Court.

He said a significant number of Kenyans are not happy with the way IEBC conducted the past two elections that saw the Supreme Court nullify presidential election results and later uphold the elections.

“Chebukati and his team faced external interference as they prepared for the elections but they have not helped themselves by the way they have managed their internal terrain where they are in charge,” said Kegoro.

“I think Chebukati should tell Kenyans within what period the commissioner will vacate office to allow the country to have a substantive conversation that is not tied down to the commissioners of the IEBC,” he added.

However Chebukati dismissed Kegoro’s remarks as personal views not reflecting the views of Kenyans and said there was a laid down procedure that dictates how they should vacate office.

Chebukati said that the commission was in office legitimately in accordance to the constitution and set laws.

“At the end of the day the commissioners are in office because of their competence, they did not just come into office, they were interviewed and brought into office by the nature of the constitutional provision and clear guidelines as to the term of office,” said Chebukati.

The Chairman said IEBC did a commendable job to hold two elections within a period of three months and the Supreme Court had just confirmed so in their ruling.

 “As a commission we believe we did two elections in three months which is a commendable effort as an electoral body and I don’t believe there is any electoral body in Africa that has been able to do so,” said Chebukati.