THE IEBC is once again at the centre of a growing political
and public storm after announcing plans to procure a fresh set of election
management system at a staggering cost of Sh7 billion for the 2027 polls.
In a move critics say reeks of waste and poor planning, the
commission says the current stock of Kiems kits—originally procured for the
2017 polls—is obsolete, citing technological redundancy, failed batteries and
expired manufacturer support.
The decision, made
public through recent newsletters and Senate submissions, has ignited a fierce
debate on public spending, transparency and the increasing cost of elections in
Kenya.
According to the IEBC’s August 4 newsletter, the commission
plans to gazette 55,393 polling stations—an increase of 9,164 from 2022—necessitating
the acquisition of additional kits.
This proposed procurement forms part of the Sh61.7 billion
budget the electoral agency is pushing for ahead of the next general election.
However, the plan is facing significant backlash from
legislators, civil society groups, and budget oversight bodies, many of whom
question the rationale behind continually replacing expensive election
technology every cycle.
The IEBC insists the kits have been used for 10 years, hence
outdated and cannot help it register new voters and manage the 2027 elections.
Concerns have followed that the IEBC has other urgent
monetary needs for by-elections, pending bills, and that elections in the
country have become an expensive affair.
While some poll
experts agree that part of the existing election technology is obsolete, they
raise questions about the cost of the procurement.
Elections Observation
Group national coordinator Mule Musau said, “My issue is always with the cost
and transparency of the process.” He said it was concerning that the processes
are usually marred with opaqueness, leaving Kenyans with substandard poll
technologies.
“We can get good, long-lasting and scalable equipment and
technology when there is openness in the process. Where opacity is the order of
the day, there will always be interests,” Mule said.
“What we should mind
now is ensuring a cost-effective procurement process,” he said, pointing out
that “elections are the most logistics-heavy event after war.”
In 2022, the IEBC spent Sh4.2 billion on poll technology,
barely five years after splurging Sh6.2 billion in 2017 for the same Kiems kits
now deemed “obsolete”.
Critics argue the
cycle enriches foreign vendors while straining public coffers.
The commission engaged France’s IDEMIA technology, formerly
OT Morpho, for the 2017 poll.
Part of the 2022 elections tech nology was supplied by a
US-based rm, Smartmatic, which supplied 14,100 Kiems kits, moving the total
count to 55,100.
At the time, barely
three years ago, the IEBC said 41,000 kits were in good working condition,
which together with the new ones, were deployed to 46,229 polling stations.
The poll agency now says that up to 45,352 kits need to be
replaced, saying they are outdated, following technological advancements. Each
would cost about Sh65,000.
“We recommend replacing outdated BVR and Kiems kits with
upgraded systems for the 2027 general election to improve security and ef
ciency while maintaining high standards set in 2022. “At this point, 45,000
Kiems kits will be 10 years old by 2027 and may not be guaranteed to perform to
the same standards of the 2022 General Election,” IEBC recently told MPs.
The Justice and Legal Affairs Committee has assured Kenyans
that it would not accommodate IEBC’s request without scrutiny.
JLAC chairman Gitonga
Murugara (Tharaka MP), while acknowledging that the gadgets are expensive, said
the proposal would be vetted rigorously.
“Once we get the full information, we will interrogate the
request, and we know what to do. We have to oversight the process. We can’t
take public money and just approve without checks,” the MP said.
The committee had ordered IEBC to provide an expert
assessment on the usability of the devices set for disposal.
The Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly has
equally raised concerns about the kits purchase mess, citing unresolved cases
of equipment disappearing in thin air.
The committee has asked the of- ce of the Auditor General
to keep an eye on the status of the kits in the subsequent reviews after it
emerged that some were missing and others vandalised at the stores.
On Wednesday, the commission bosses, during a breakfast
meeting with media stakeholders, said they would call a sitting to discuss the
cost of elections.
Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi is among notable
government officials who have expressed discomfort with the expensive
purchases.
He recently lamented
that the “cost of elections is too high”, asking IEBC to be efficient and
consider using the existing materials, including ballot boxes.
As IEBC clamours for a new set of devices, questions abound
on how the previously acquired kits have been handled.
Various reports have revealed that some of the equipment is
wasting away for want of storage and maintenance.
In a 2024 report, Auditor General Nancy Gathungu observed
that 3,433 Kiems kits were faulty, and that 200 were not returned after the
2017 and 2022 general elections. Two were reported as lost, and 30 were burnt
in Wajir county.
Further, 159 kits
dispatched for by-elections and petitions were yet to be returned to the IEBC
headquarters.
At the Karachuonyo IEBC constituency office, the premises
and storage areas were in poor condition, and 31 BVR laptops and 45 chargers
were reported missing.
The loss was reported to have occurred on August 26, 2021.
“Further, there was inadequate accounting of the store’s
records and no reconciliation had been done,” Gathungu reported.
Similarly, a eld visit to the IEBC of ces in Kisii
revealed variances between store records provided and a physical count.
At least 26 were not accounted for. Further, physical veri
cation carried out in September 2024 revealed that a total of 79 kits had no
hard disks, while 215 were empty.
The IEBC had also indicated that SIM cards that were used in
the last election cannot be redeployed in any subsequent election.
It argued that some
of the supplies were to expire within months from the date of acquisition, with
the likes of SIM cards already deactivated.
The commission said the devices would not be disposed of
entirely and can be used by other state agencies, but not to manage elections.
Memories of the last election still linger.
Kiems kits had reportedly “failed” in opposition strongholds during past
elections, fueling claims of sabotage. For members of the opposition, the IEBC
has its work cut out in assuring that the devices don’t fail, the cost
notwithstanding
