Opposition endorses report on IEBC electoral reforms

The CORD coalition's leaders Kalonzo Musyoka, Raila Odinga and Moses Wetang'ula. They have endorsed  the report of the joint parliamentary select committee on the electoral reforms and said if passed, it will anchor a new dawn in the management of elections. (PHOTO: COURTESY)

CORD bosses have supported the report of the joint parliamentary select committee on the electoral reforms.

The Opposition parliamentary group has also endorsed the report. The coalition's leaders Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetang'ula said if passed, it will anchor a new dawn in the management of elections.

Mr Raila said CORD would ensure the 2017 elections are peaceful, where losers concede defeat just like in mature democracies.

"We want the next elections to reflect the will and wishes of the people. We want a transparent, accountable, verifiable election which reflects the will of the people," he said.

He added: "We will accept and concede defeat if they (Jubilee) wins but we also want them to prepare to concede if we defeat them because we know we will defeat them."

Raila said they had fully been briefed of the report and the bills and they we fully supporting it. 

During a meeting at Ufungamano yesterday, the committee's co-chairman James Orengo said he steered the team to make the changes.

"The proposals in the Elections Amendment and Elections Offences Act if passed will make it very difficult for any person to rig the 2017 elections and beyond," said Orengo.

He called on all CORD lieutenants and Jubilee to adopt the report and pass the bill without amendments. CORD believes that the proposal to have the General Election conducted electronically from the voter registration, identification and results transmission anchored in law will cure the perennial allegations of election rigging and malpractice.

Committee members were warned not make any disclosure of what happened behind the scenes during the retreat when they went to draft the report and the bills.

CORD also agreed to have its information technology experts to be part of the international forensic audit firm that will be involved in the clean-up of the voter register.

"We have always believed that voters registered in 2013 were only 12 million and not 14 million. We have unanimously agreed that we will have our IT experts during the forensic audit," said a source.