Deputy President Kithure Kindiki during a church service in Navakholo, Kakamega County on Sunday, December 8, 2024.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has absolved the government from blame over failure to have the IEBC fully constituted.
Kindiki said the IEBC would have been fully reconstituted were it not for a court injunction that stopped the recruitment process.
“The reason that there is no IEBC at the moment is because some Kenyans went to court. There is an injunction against the establishment of the recruitment panel that is supposed to recruit IEBC commissioners,” Kindiki said.
He spoke on Sunday at a church service in Navakholo constituency, Kakamega County.
Kindiki said the government respects the rule of law and as such, it would not go against a court injunction by proceeding with the recruitment process.
The DP asked the parties embroiled in a dispute over their representatives in the recruitment panel to solve the matter out of court so that the process could continue.
“This is a country governed by the rule of law. When there is an injunction, the government is not able to do anything,” he said.
“We are asking the parties that have taken this matter to court to try and reach an out-of-court settlement so that we can unblock that process and conclude it as soon as possible.”
The remarks come hot on the heels of a raging debate among Kenyans who have intensified their push to have the electoral body constituted as soon as possible.
The calls intensified after Supreme Court judge Isaac Lenaola raised concerns about why the country was lacking a fully constituted IEBC yet other aspects of governance were moving on swiftly.
“I don’t understand why we are busy passing legislation very quickly on other subjects that are politically important but we don’t look at what is extremely important for this country,” Lenaola said.
“For example the Electoral Commission, how can a country like ours stand on her feet if we do not have an electoral commission? Elections are in 2027, this is 2024, when will this commission be prepared?” he posed.
He went on to ask Kenyans to leverage their social media platforms to push for the reconstitution of the IEBC.
The move saw Kenyans throng social media platforms to agitate for the reconstitution of the IEBC.
The hashtag appointIEBC dominated other trends on social media for the better part of Saturday and Friday, marking the beginning of a fresh bid to have the electoral body constituted as soon as possible.
