IEBC prints manual voter register ahead of August polls

The IEBC Vice chairperson Juliana Cherera has confirmed that he commission has printed manual register as Kenya prepares for the August polls.

Speaking at JKIA after receiving the first presidential ballot papers, she said the manual register is available.

“Yes it is available but the commission has also released protocol on how that manual register is going to be used,” Cherera stated.

The tussle on the use of the manual register generated so much controversy that the electoral agency organised a consultative meeting with the four presidential candidates for an amicable resolution.

Azimio La Umoja One coalition presidential candidate Raila Odinga and Deputy President William Ruto, George Wajackoyah of Roots Party and Agano's David Mwaure Waihiga were all present at the meeting held at the Windsor Hotel in Kiambu County last month.

Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Wafula Chebukati assured the candidates that their concerns over the register would be addressed amicably.

“The issue of the register will be addressed and it will be shared with the stakeholders and we shall break them down up to each polling station,” Chebukati said.

Prior to the Windsor meeting on June 29,  Raila and Ruto had taken a common stand on the phasing out of the physical register.

Ruto, however, changed his tune and said he would be okay with an electronic register provided the IEBC issued sufficient guarantees that all registered voters would be allowed to cast their ballots.

The Azimio-One Kenya team however insisted that the exclusive use of the electronic voter identification system would be against the law.

Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga has been pushing that manual voter registers must be used at the August polls.

IEBC had planned not to use printed registers on polling day saying they would create an avenue for electoral malpractices. 

The commission, however, said it would only resort to the manual register as a last resort in case of a technology breakdown.