IEBC dismisses Raila’s request on Mombasa, Kakamega polls
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commision (IEBC) has dismissed as ‘misleading’ a request by Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga to chairman Wafula Chebukati to keep off the Mombasa and Kakamega gubernatorial elections.
In a statement, the Commisioned clarified that Chebukati has no role to play in the two elections which will be held on August 29, 2022.
The Commission wishes to inform the public that the statements made today by Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga with regard to the role of the Chairman in the two Gubernatorial elections scheduled for Monday 29th August 2022 are misleading.
(1/2)— IEBC (@IEBCKenya) August 24, 2022
IEBC also released the names of returning officers who set to handle the two elections.
Gubernatorial elections are run by gazetted Returning Officers as provided for by the law. For avoidance of doubt, Returning Officers for Mombasa and Kakamega counties are Ibrahim Swalhah Yusuf and Joseph Ayatta, respectively.
(2/2)— IEBC (@IEBCKenya) August 24, 2022
Odinga had, while addressing a public gathering in Mombasa on Wednesday, asked Chebukati to recuse himself from the polls in Kakamega and Mombasa on the premise that he’d been adversely mentioned in irregularities in the just-concluded general election.
He further suggested that IEBC vice-chairperson Juliana Cherera be allowed to preside over the election as the country awaits the Supreme Court’s verdict.
Odinga also claimed, but without providing proof, that the IEBC deliberately denied the Mombasa and Kakamega gubernatorial polls so as to suppress voter turnout in the area perceived to be his strongholds.