Nassir, Omar protest IEBC suspension of Mombasa governor election
Some of the contestants in the Mombasa gubernatorial race. They are from left: Mvita MP Abdulswamad Nassir, former senator Hassan Omar Hassan Sarai and Dr William Kingi.
The Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition and Kenya Kwanza Alliance have protested the suspension of Mombasa governor election, questioning the decision by the electoral commission.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) candidate Abdulswamad Nassir and his United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate Hassan Omar said they were shocked by the announcement.
They, however, asked their supporters to come out in large numbers and vote for their respective presidential candidates.
The Independent, Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) suspended elections in Mombasa, Kakamega and two other electoral areas citing wrong images of candidates and details printed on the ballot papers.
The commission said voters in the affected areas will only vote for the other five elective positions.
The other affected areas are parliamentary elections in Kacheliba and Pokot South.
Mr Nassir, who is the outgoing Mvita MP, poked holes into the decision by commission.
“Why is this occurring in Mombasa and Kakamega locations that are considered to be an ODM zone?” asked Mr Nassir.
The MP asked his supporters to remain calm and vote for Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga on Tuesday.
On his part, Mr Omar expressed concerns that suspending the elections could have a negative impact on the voter turnout when governor elections are held.
"We read malice and mischief Turn out will automatically be affected but we ask the government to make the new election date a public holiday for people to come out and vote when IEBC will be ready to hold the polls," he said.
Mr Omar spoke at the UDA headquarters in Mombasa flanked by his running mate Selina Maitha.
