Team opposes bid to nominate losers

By VITALIS KIMUTAI

The National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC) has opposed the inclusion of presidential candidates and their running mates in the parties’ nominees lists.

NGEC Commissioner, Simon Ndubai said losers in the recent party primaries should also not be in the list of proposed nominees. He said it was wrong for the United Democratic Forum to include Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi and former MP Jeremiah Kioni in its list of nominees, although the DPM later ruled himself out.

The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) has picked former MP Elizabeth Ongoro while United Republican Party (URP) has former Assistant Minister Beatrice Kones in its list of proposed nominees to the Senate. “Only candidates representing special groups and minorities merit to be in the list of nominees to National Assembly and the Senate,” Ndubai said.

He feared that people with disabilities, women, the youth and minority groups could be underrepresented in the Senate and National Assembly going by the party lists been made public so far. “We are waiting for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to release the ratified list of nominees and we expect it (IEBC) to reject lists of nominees that have presidential candidates, their running mates and losers in the primaries,” Ndubai said.

PREMISE OF MERIT

He said NGEC would move to court to challenge such lists. “If the gender rule is not followed, we will move to court to challenge the legality of the party lists and we will take the matter all the way to the Supreme Court,” Ndubai warned. He spoke on Tuesday during a workshop on the constitutional implementation process towards the next General Election, organised by the Constitution and Reform Education Consortium (CRECO) at a Nairobi hotel.

Citizens Coalition for Constitutional Culture Executive Director Mr Ochieng Khairalla said gender is a critical factor in nominations to Parliament. “The nominations must be secured on the premise of merit, values and excellence to ensure we do not have people in the list who will entrench impunity and mutilation of the new Constitution,” Ochieng said.

Mr Suba Churchill, National Civil Society Congress Co-ordinator said there would be no constitutional crisis should the gender rule not be met in the next polls.