• Commission had mixed up candidates' parties tickets and the votes recorded.
• Building Bridges for National Unity Advisory Task Force recommends an overhaul to win back public confidence in the crucial agency.
Image: JACK OWUOR
Three years since conducting one of the most controversial elections in Kenya, the electoral commission seems to be still not getting things right.
The commission had to – at the weekend – recall its report of the 2017 elections after it emerged that the data contained serious mistakes.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission uploaded the 2017 General Election data on its website on Saturday.
On Sunday, however, the entity chaired by Wafula Chebukati said it was bringing down the data to rectify "typographical errors".
However, a close look at the data shows the errors were not typographical in nature but misrepresentation of figures and in some instances political parties on which the candidates contested.
In 2017, the Supreme Court nullified the presidential elections citing massive irregularities in the conduct of the election in which President Uhuru Kenyatta won against his then political rival ODM leader Raila Odinga.
“The commission has recalled the 2017 General Election data that was uploaded on the IEBC website after a few typographic errors occasioned by massive data were noted,” the commission said.
“The corrected document will be re-uploaded and shared in due course. Inconvenience caused highly regrettable.”
The Supreme Court, in its historic ruling, indicted the commission for bungling the polls and termed the results null.
Four judges led by Chief Justice David Maraga ruled in favour of NASA's petition challenging the results, while two – Njoki Ndung'u and Jackton Ojwang (now retired) – ruled against it.
"The presidential election was not conducted in accordance with the Constitution," Chief Justice David Maraga said then.
The data had glaring mix-ups, with candidates given figures either way below or above that which was declared at the constituency tallying centres.
In one case, IEBC indicated that Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu won on Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper party ticket. Ngilu was elected on her Narc party ticket.
The report showed Suba North MP Millie Odhiambo was an ANC candidate while her Kasipul Kabondo counterpart Eve Obara was elected on the ruling Jubilee party ticket.
The two lawmakers from Homa Bay county were elected on the ODM ticket.
In Muhoroni constituency, the polls agency listed Francis Ogot as the winner on the ODM ticket with 50,800 votes instead of current MP Onyango K'Oyoo who retained his seat on the Orange party ticket.
In Kasipul Kabondo, the IEBC data had former MP Sylvance Osele as the winner on the ODM ticket. The former MP decamped from the party after losing the nomination to the current lawmaker Eve Obara.
Obara, who trounced Osele in the ODM primaries and the general election, was listed as a Jubilee candidate who came second last with only 69 votes.
In Millie’s Suba North, the IEBC data had Noah Onyango as the winner on the ODM ticket while Millie – who was reelected – was captured having just 65 votes in the August 8, 2017 election.
The report showed former MP Dennis Waweru won the Dagoretti South MP seat. But the position was won by John Kiarie, who trounced Waweru on the Jubilee ticket.
The commission had erroneously listed Judah Martin Oduor as the winner of the Kibra seat instead of Ken Okoth of ODM.
The commission had not uploaded the correct version by close of business on Monday.
There are plans to send home the remaining three commissioners and reconstituting the entity afresh.
Building Bridges for National Unity Advisory Task Force recommends an overhaul to win back public confidence in the crucial agency.
The three commissioners currently in office are chairman Wafula Chebukati, Prof Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu.
Their colleagues Connie Maina, Margaret Mwachanya, Paul Kurgat and Roselyn Akombe resigned.
Edited by R.Wamochie