IEBC right to resign but can compromise

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has withdrawn from a new multi-agency government committee preparing for the August 2022 election.

IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati said in a letter to Interior PS Karanja Kibicho that its independence would be compromised by membership of the National Multi-Sectoral Consultative Forum on Election Preparedness and Technical Working Committee.

The new committee was set up to ward off the logistical and security issues that have bedevilled previous elections.

But some quarters, particularly the UDA, have cried foul believing that the new committee could be a precursor to stage-managing the next election.

The Judiciary and Parliament already have their own election preparedness committees. The new multi-agency committee may become much more interventionist and this could infringe on the constitutional independence of the IEBC.

The IEBC may be right in principle to withdraw from the multi-agency committee but it cannot operate in isolation. It needs to manage the Executive, especially since it has blocked the IEBC from receiving donor funds for the election.

The IEBC should pursue a compromise. Perhaps it could offer to make presentations to the multi-agency committee while making it clear that it is a separate independent entity.

Quote of the day: "Everyone has a price, the important thing is to find out what it is."

Pablo Escobar
The Colombian drug lord was born on December 1, 1949