Nazlin Umar threatens to rally Kenyans to boycott polls over new laws

Presidential aspirant Nazlin Umar has threatened to rally Kenyans to boycott the August General Election if the High Court does not find newly enacted election laws irregular.

Ms Umar, who is also a political activist, on Tuesday faulted President Uhuru Kenyatta for signing into law the 2016 Elections Laws (Amendment) Bill and vowed to challenge then in court.

The new law, among other provisions, allows the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to have an “alternative mechanism” for identifying voters and transmitting election results should electronic systems fail.

Ms Umar said Mr Kenyatta was misguided to sign the Bill, which was passed by both chambers of Parliament despite opposition from the Coalition of Reforms and Democracy (Cord) and many Kenyans.

STEAL VOTES

“I advised that the President should not sign the Bill into law because it will embarrass him when the court finds it is irregular,” she said at her home in Parklands, Nairobi.

According to Ms Umar, signing the Bill, which she prefers to call the “Rigging Bill”, not only means that Jubilee is going to steal the elections but also that the Opposition has been allowed to do the same in its strongholds.

Ms Umar said Mr Kenyatta should have listened to the voice of the majority of Kenyans before making his decision on the management of elections.

“The nation is not ready for the manual back-up and so the IEBC should purchase equipment that allows for electronic back-up to stop rigging,” she said.

CAUSE CHAOS

She said her petition to the Senate was that the Bill should not be made law as it would corrupt the August elections.

“I am aware that the Senate agreed not to challenge the National Assembly and therefore I will be challenging the Bill in court on the basis that Senator Kiraitu Murungi’s vote corrupted the whole Senate voting process,” she said.

Ms Umar further said the law could plunge Kenya into chaos if candidates and their supporters feel their votes have been stolen.

Cord leaders have opposed the new law and will announce their next move at the Bomas of Kenya in Nairobi on Wednesday, when they meet aspirants seeking to run on the tickets of affiliate parties.