Panel set timelines to hire new IEBC team as pressure mounts
Dr Nelson Makanda takes his oath during the swearing in ceremony of the IEBC selection panel at the Supreme Court in Nairobi on Monday, January 27.
The nine-member selection panel for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) on Friday, January 31 picked Nelson Makanda and Lindah Kiome as Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, respectively, as they begin the recruitment.
This as the panel – which is under pressure to have new commissioners in office – gave itself not more than 85 days to undertake the recruitment that includes calling for application, shortlisting and conducting interviews before submitting names of qualified candidates to the President for appointment.
“For the next 85 days or less, we, as the selection panel, have undertaken to ensure that we deliver on our mandate of giving Kenyans the next chairperson and members of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission,” said Dr Makanda in a statement.
“That panel shall tomorrow, Saturday, February 1, 2025, invite applications from qualified Kenyans for the positions of Chairperson and Members of the IEBC. I assure Kenyans that the Selection Panel is committed to conducting the recruitment exercise in an impartial, fair and transparent manner,” he said.
The nine-member panel sworn in includes Dr Makanda and Fatuma Saman, nominated by the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya; Ms Kiome and Prof Adams Oloo for the Parliamentary Service Commission; Mr James Misati, Mr Nicodemus Bore and Dr Koki Muli for the Political Parties Liaison Committee (PPLC).
Mr Andrew Kipkoech Tanui sits in the panel as a nominee of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya, while Ms Carolene Kituku is the nominee of the Law Society of Kenya.
The panel made the commitment even as a group of civil society groups urged them to uphold transparency and independence in the reconstitution of IEBC.
The recruitment of new IEBC Commissioners has been a lengthy and controversial process due to several issues since the commissioners led by Wafula Chebukati.
In January 2023, the terms of the Chairperson and Commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu, expired. Three others—Juliana Cherera, Justus Nyang’aya, and Francis Wanderi—resigned, while Ms Irene Masit was dismissed after a tribunal process.
As a result, the electoral body has been left without a full set of commissioners for over two years, causing significant delays and challenges in its operations.
“We advise as follows the Selection Panel to conduct its work with utmost independence, impartiality, transparency, inclusivity as well as commitment to all stages of the recruitment process until its logical conclusion to boost public confidence and thus increase acceptance of the relevant processes,” said Mulle Musau, National Coordinator, Election Observation Group in a joint press statement by various civil society groups.
“A transparent and fair electoral process is essential for maintaining the democratic gains that Kenya has made. All stakeholders must come together to ensure that the elections reflect the will of the people,” he added.
Further, Mr Musau called on all stakeholders particularly the political class to respect the process and afford the selection panel ample opportunity to complete its legal mandate so as to safeguard the integrity of the process.
“All relevant state entities, including Parliament and the Presidency, should expedite their roles in the recruitment and appointment process. Given the approximately 132-day timeline, it is crucial to ensure timely and efficient execution, with efforts to shorten the timeline where possible,” he said.
The group emphasised that Kenya is lagging behind in enacting critical changes despite recommendations from international election observation missions and the IEBC’s post-election evaluation report following the 2022 elections.
The group also called for the timely completion of the boundary delimitation process, which is constitutionally mandated but overdue. The boundary delimitation was expected to be done by March 2024.
At the same time, Banisa, Magarini and Ugunja constituencies cannot hold by-elections to replace their MPs due to the absence of the commissioners.
The civil society groups have also emphasised the importance of auditing the voter register and beginning the registration of new voters to ensure a fair and transparent election.
“The constitutionally mandated boundary review. Now overdue, must be expedited to align with the legal timeline and avert potential litigation. III. Voter Registration and Audit of the Register: With new voters expected to vote in 2027 and the need for an independent audit on the register of voters to enhance trust. The process of registration must begin promptly to avoid last-minute rushes,” said Felix Odhiambo, Executive director Electoral Law and Governance Institute of Africa.
The platform expressed concern over the financial implications of some of the proposed amendments and called for thorough public consultations before any changes are finalized. While they welcomed the National Dialogue Committee’s legislative proposals aimed at reforming the electoral system they cautioned that these reforms must be inclusive and transparent.
“In order to have responsive electoral reforms, our platform calls for a robust and meaningful public participation on electoral reforms and processes that goes beyond perfunctory consultations. We demand a comprehensive approach that ensures genuine citizen input in the legislative process - Critically examines the financial implications,” said Mr Odhiambo.
They also called for mobile ID registration drives and the establishment of integrated service centres that would combine national ID and voter registration services.
“We urge the government to expedite the process, especially in border regions, to ensure that all eligible citizens are able to participate in the upcoming elections," said Sheila Masinde, executive director, Transparency International-Kenya.
The lack of commissioners has hampered the IEBC as it can't verify names and boundaries as required by the constitution or hold by-elections that have exceeded constitutional requirements in three constituencies and several wards across the country.
The Commission cannot get funding from development partners without Commissioners as some of them have demanded direct requests from President Ruto to release aid.
The vacant senior management positions at the Commission could not be filled.
These include the Director of Voter Education and Partnerships, the Director of Research, Boundaries and Risk Management, the Director of Procurement and the Director of Human Resources and Administration.
After each general election, the Commission is required to review its operations within 18 months and make the necessary changes to make its work more efficient, effective, transparent and accountable.
This has not happened in the absence of commissioners.
In the absence of commissioners, Kenyans have also been unable to recall their non-performing MPs and initiate constitutional amendments through the popular initiative process.
The review of the electoral laws and regulations and the updating of the electoral register, which can only be carried out by the Commission in plenary session.
The law states that once the selection committee is duly constituted, it will review applications, shortlist and interview candidates.
"The interviews shall be conducted in public," the IEBC Act states.
After the interviews, the selection panel shall select two persons qualified to be appointed as chairperson and nine persons qualified to be appointed as members of the commission and forward the names to the president.
The President nominates one person for appointment as Chairman and six persons for appointment as members.
Within seven days, the names are submitted to the National Assembly for approval before being formally appointed.
Additional reporting by Ndubi Moturi