Al Ghurair delivers first batch of ballot papers at JKIA – PHOTOS
Ballot papers for the General Election, which is only 19 days away, have arrived in the country.
The consignment came from Dubai, even as the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission came under pressure to demonstrate that it has sufficiently tested the equipment.
The ballot papers for five elective positions excluding those to be used in the presidential election arrived at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi, at 6pm and were received by top IEBC officials.
The papers will be cleared and taken to the commission’s warehouses, awaiting distribution to the counties.
TENDER DISPUTE
A dispute over the tender for printing the presidential ballot papers is awaiting determination by the Court of Appeal on Thursday.
Printing for the papers ought to have started Tuesday, according to the commission’s timetable.
The National Super Alliance has objected to the papers being printed by Al Ghurair Printing & Publishing, claiming it the company is close to the First Family.
Ballot papers for governor, senator, member of the national assembly, woman representative and ward representative were not disputed and were therefore unaffected by the High Court ruling, which stopped the printing of the presidential papers on the basis that the tender was awarded to Al Ghurair without public participation.
COURT DIRECTIVE
IEBC has since appealed the ruling on grounds that the court’s directive was not practical, more so with the limited time left until the August 8 election day.
On Tuesday, IEBC chief executive officer Ezra Chiloba said the commission would this week publish the voter register for public inspection but with truncated information regarding ID numbers and voters’ images for privacy reasons.
On the presidential ballot papers crisis, Mr Chiloba said the commission is considering direct procurement should the Court of Appeal not rule in its favour.
