Kisii residents, aspirants protest, accusing IEBC officials of bias

IEBC Chairperson Wafula during the IEBC pre-conference forum on The Role of Media and Opinion Polls in Shaping the Electoral Process in the 2022 General Election at KICC, Nairobi on July 10, 2022. Residents of Kisii have accused the commission of bias in recruitment of poll officials.

Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group

Residents and aspirants in Kisii County have held protests, accusing some officials of the electoral agency of being biased, corrupt and unprofessional.

The protesters want Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Wafula Chebukati to crack the whip on ‘rogue’ constituency returning officers.

There are reports that some returning officers were transferred sometime back but have stayed put at their old stations for unclear reasons.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, residents demonstrated in Kisii town, Nyaribari Chache, Ogembo, Itumbe and South Mugirango, asking Mr Chebukati to transfer the returning officers.

Mr Brian Mwangi said he and others had applied for jobs as presiding officers and polling clerks but those picked are apparently allied to a politician from Bobasi constituency, raising questions about the credibility of IEBC officials in general.

Mr Pascal Omare, from Sameta, alleged massive bribery when officials were recruited and called on the anti-corruption watchdog to investigate the claims.

But the Bobasi Returning Officer Fridah Chebet dismissed the allegations, noting that it is a political season and people are bound to make any claims.

“Allegations are out there, this a political season, and you cannot expect people to just speak the truth. I am not from here and I know no one,” said Ms Chebet, adding that no politician had given her a list or requested her to employ presiding officers, their deputies and clerks they prefer.

In South Mugirango, some residents walked over 10km to the constituency IEBC offices, protesting bias in the hiring of election officials.

Threat to sue

They called for transparency in recruitment or they would sue to challenge the process legally.

They said a majority of candidates shortlisted for interviews come from one clan, noting that there was no equity in regional and clan representation.

They added that the percentage of non-locals interviewed is significantly higher than in the 2017 General Election.

“Most people who were there in 2017 are the same ones in the IEBC offices. We are asking Mr Chebukati to confirm why the same officers are being recruited for this election,” said a resident.

But the constituency’s returning officer, Mr Nixon Nyamweya, rejected the allegations, promising to investigate the claims.

ODM parliamentary candidate James Kenani claimed the returning officer, who served in Nyaribari Masaba in 2017, had been moved within the same clan of Nyaribari to preside over the elections in Nyaribari Chache.

Mr Kenani and ODM ward candidates from Nyaribari Chache – Mr Joshua Nyabengi and Wilfred Bosire – explained that the parliamentary election in Nyaribari Masaba was highly contested.

“Several letters have been sent to IEBC to transfer the officer and no changes have been made so far. We have information he has been recruiting clerks and presiding officers from the list given by our opponents,” said Mr Kenani.

They asked Mr Chebukati to immediately remove the returning officer and vowed not to work with him.

“There is information that he has been transferred but he is still in office working with our opponents,” said Mr Kenani.

They asked the IEBC to clarify the exact location of the tallying centre.

“We need to know when the public participation was done to change the location to KIHBT [Kenya Institute of Highways and Building Technology, Kisii campus] and when it was gazetted?” said Mr Kenani.

He said he and his supporters would not allow anyone to mess up this election, claiming there was a conspiracy to rig him out.