An IEBC commissioner job candidate has said the winner-takes-it-all mode of elections is doing the country more harm than good.
Timothy Tipila, a lawyer, on Thursday said there were many factors to be blamed for the ills in the country's democracy with winner-takes-it all being key among them.
“The law is not the problem. We have a well established legal regime. It is the competitive nature of our elections that is the problem,” he stated during his interview.
Tipila added that the problem is made worse due to the fact that parties and candidates invest a lot of resources in elections.
He further said failure by the IEBC to conduct sufficient voter and civic education is to blame for the violent situations that are witnessed during elections.
“We have not been doing sufficient education so that voters and candidates understand the process and have confidence in the electoral agency,” he added.
He further added that IEBC does not share information with the public, adequately and in good time.
Meanwhile, Zippy Musyimi, another candidate, told the panel she would be cautious when disclosing to Kenyans the level of IEBC's preparedness to hold an election.
She said certain disclosures could cause Kenyans to panic and make them think there would not be an election.
“There are some things you disclose and others you don't. It is up to IEBC to go to the National Treasury and tell them what they need to oversee an election,” she said.
Musyimi added that Kenyans should just be told that the electoral body would use the available resources to oversee an election.
“When people go to vote, they just want to find a ballot paper and a ballot box. They do not want to know how much was spent,” she explained.
She added that all institutions have limited resources but they find ways of delivering on their mandate.
“No institution has bottomless resources. They all have to do with what is available,” she stated.
Musyimi reiterated there was no need for Kenyans to be cautioned on the level of preparedness the way a company would issue a profit warning when earnings drop.
She however said IEBC should be able to tell voters what the possible shortcomings as a way of managing their expectations.
Thursday marked the final day of interviews for shortlisted candidates.
