UDA primaries: Hundreds miss out in Elgeyo Marakwet after names missing
Voters cast ballots during UDA primaries on April 14, 2022.
Hundreds of people have failed to vote in the ongoing United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party primaries in Elgeyo Marakwet County after their names were found missing in the register.
The party is apparently using the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) 2017 voter register for the polls.
Among the affected are those who registered as new voters after the 2017 elections and those who changed their polling stations in the past five years.
Former inspector-general of police Joseph Boinnet, who is running for the Elgeyo Marakwet governor’s seat, could not hide his disappointment after failing to cast his vote at the Kipkabus Downs Primary School polling centre.
“This is disenfranchising hundreds of voters who are eager to exercise their democratic right. The party had promised us the updated IEBC register would have been used,” he said.
Mr Boinnet said he used to vote in Nairobi, where he lived, but had transferred his voting station to Elgeyo Marakwet.
“Since I am an individual who respects institutions, I raised the issue using the available party structures and left the polling station,” he said.
“Let everyone respect what the party has provided we use, because introducing another document might compromise the credibility of the process.”
Other than the anomalies in the register, he said, the process was going on well and urged locals to turn up in large numbers and vote.
Mr Josphat Bett, another voter who was turned away because his name was missing in the register, also expressed his frustration.
“I recently registered as a voter but despite waking up early to cast my vote, I was turned away. The register used was for the 2017 General Election. It is disappointing because I cannot choose the leader I want,” he said.
Across Elgeyo Marakwet, except for the missing names, the Nation established that polling was smooth though voter turnout was low.
Voting also started later than 7am at a majority of polling stations.
