- The religious leaders added that the country is in a state of a constitutional crisis following the lapse of the deadline for delimitation of boundaries.
- They said Kisii county is without a Deputy Governor since there is no Commission to gazette the new appointment.
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Religious leaders have called on the Kenya Kwanza administration to urgently constitute the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
In a communique released at the end of the 4th National Dialogue Conference on Tuesday, the clergy noted that Kenya has gone for 16 months without a properly constituted electoral agency.
“Already, there are two constituencies, Banissa and Lagdera, and four wards; Nyamaiwa, Kisa East, Lakezone, and Chewena without Members of National Assembly and Members of County Assembly respectively," they said in a statement.
"On its part, Kisii county is without a Deputy Governor since there is no Commission to gazette the new appointment. This is a breach of the constitutional rights of Kenyan citizens.”
The communique was signed by the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) secretary general Chris Kinyanjui, Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (Supkem) secretary general Abdullahi Salat and the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) Simon Peter Kamomoe.
The religious leaders further said the absence of a fully constituted IEBC has the country in a state of a constitutional crisis following the lapse of the deadline for delimitation of boundaries.
“We call upon President William Ruto and all concerned stakeholders to speedily conclude the recruitment of IEBC Commissioners. It would be prudent to separate this process from other political discourse due to the magnitude of the risk that the lack of an IEBC portends to the nation,” they said.
Religious leaders drawn from the NCCK, KCCB and Supkem convened the 4th National Dialogue Conference at Ufungamano House, Nairobi.
The goal of the meeting was to review the report presented to Parliament by the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) as well as the attendant Parliamentary Bills.
IEBC is made up of seven commissioners including a CEO, who also acts as the commission secretary, appointed by them.
The commissioners are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Parliament.
Each member serves a six-year term.
The commission is currently without commissioners after the lapse of chairman Wafula Chebukati's tenure and that of Abdi Guliye and Bola Molu.
Four others, led by then vice chair Juliana Cherera, resigned following the August 15, 2022, debacle at the Bomas of Kenya.
The religious leaders said the government should publish the NADCO report in a way accessible to all Kenyans so they understand what is being said about their future.
The report contains recommendations on the reconstitution of the electoral agency, one of the pertinent issues that informed the formation of the dialogue committee.
“Have the joint Justice and Legal Affairs Committee visit all the counties to receive feedback from the citizens, and then use that feedback to review the report and proposed legal and policy… ensure comprehensive nation-wide public engagement on the Bills of Parliament that are being tabled,” they said.