UDA county coordinators have been warned against interfering with the democratic rights of members and favouring particular aspirants during nominations.
Bomet Central MP aspirant Charles Kerich told the officials and the national elections board to ensure the process is fair and without rigging or malpractices that have been synonymous with primaries.
Kerich, former editor of the Star, said with UDA being a party with a national outlook, transparency and fairness must be upheld, In this way, Kenyans can have confidence and it will be safeguarded.
“We have asked the party to ensure our nomination is free, fair and verifiable," he said "Each aspirant must feel their rights have been guaranteed so those who have won or been defeated know they have passed through a transparent process," he told reporters over the weekend.
He further appealed to the party to ensure there are enough ballot papers on voting day to avert situations in which materials are limited. This raises suspicious about the party' authority.
“We know the number of voters in each of the polling station, so we do not expect a situation where too few ballot materials are availed to warrant the use of exercise books as has been the case,” he said.
He added, “This party can only be built when we make things right and in order and this will become evident during the nominations. If we allow them to be shambolic, then we shall be tainting its image.”
Kerich will be seeking the party's ticket against woman representative Joyce Korir, Richard Kilel, Patrick Bii and Agnes Ngeno.
The former Nairobi CEC for finance and planning also urged hose who will be defeated to support the victors.
On direct party tickets, Kerich said while the party may have discretion to award some candidates in some regions, he said he does not expect it to happen in Bomet and other areas where UDA is the only party to beat.
On the raging debate on election rigging ignited by DP Ruto in his US tour, Kerich told IEBC to remain independent and deliver a just poll. A blunder can create unnecessary chaos, he said.
(Edited by V. Graham)
