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IEBC under pressure as Ol Kalou rivals trade poll sabotage claims
Residents of Ol Kalou Constituency in Nyandarua County receive mattresses, blankets, and gas cylinders as campaigns for the July 16 by-election gather momentum.
What you need to know:
- Both the opposition and United Democratic Alliance are accusing each other of planning violence.
- United Opposition leaders are demanding action by the IEBC over the voter bribery allegations.
Political parties have engaged in blame games over the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) capacity to hold the July 16 Ol Kalou by-election.
There are also counter-allegations of voter bribery and violence, with both the opposition and United Democratic Alliance (UDA) accusing each other of planning violence.
United Opposition leaders, in a statement signed by former Chief Justice David Maraga, who is also the leader of the United Green Movement Party, Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, People's Liberation Party leader Martha Karua, Linda Mwananchi Movement leader Edwin Sifuna, and Jubilee Party deputy leader Dr Fred Matiang'i, also demanded action by the IEBC over the voter bribery allegations.
"Ol Kalou voters are being bribed with cash, GOK mattresses, and gas cylinders while state officials campaign using public resources. That's bribery under Section 9 of the Electoral Offences Act, and abuse of office under Sections 14 and 15," the leaders said in the joint statement.
They urged the IEBC and the DCI to target the offenders and not the voters.
"The reports coming from Ol Kalou should alarm every Kenyan who believes in democracy. For days, Kenyans have watched cash, GOK-branded mattresses, gas cylinders, impromptu projects not budgeted for, and other inducements being splashed on voters on a scale that is unprecedented. These are not isolated campaign incidents by rogue individuals. It is a coordinated government-wide scheme to buy the sovereign right of the voters of Ol Kalou Constituency," reads part of the joint statement.
The statement added that government officials have been deployed in a political capacity, using State resources to campaign for the UDA candidate.
The leaders say the ongoing activities constitute multiple electoral offences.
Energy Principal Secretary Alex Wachira presents a six-kilogram gas cylinder to a resident of Ol Kalou on July 7, 2026 as campaigns for the by-elections intensify.
"It is outright voter bribery as defined under Section 9 of the Electoral Offences Act, punishable by up to six years in prison, a fine of Sh2 million, or both. It is also a breach of Section 14 on the use of public resources and Section 15 on the participation of public officers in elections. Public money is not a campaign tool. Kenyans should rise up against our resources being used to prop up a presidency that the country is counting down to get rid of," reads the statement.
The opposition says the responsibility rests with the IEBC, which must immediately demonstrate that it has control over the conduct of elections in this country.
"The DCI and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission must conduct thorough investigations into rampant bribery, voter treating, and all violations of the Elections Act, with a view to prosecuting the culprits without delay. The people of Ol Kalou must be allowed to exercise their democratic right without intimidation," the statement says.
Like all other parties, the United Opposition leaders opposed any postponement of the election.
This, as Saboti MP Caleb Hamisi, while campaigning for People's Renaissance Movement candidate Timothy Kariuki in Rurii, accused the IEBC of laxity in implementing the law, saying the UDA candidate should have been banned over alleged massive voter bribery.
"Ol Kalou by-election is a litmus test for the IEBC; they must get it right this time to restore the confidence of Kenyans. This can only be achieved through banning the UDA candidate," said the MP.
He said the IEBC started very well but is losing its grip by failing to crack the whip against the government's candidate.
But in what appeared to be a widening crack in the Opposition, the MP criticised Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua for stopping the Linda Mwananchi team from visiting Ol Kalou on Sunday.
Government officials, led by Energy Principal Secretary Alex Wachira, pose for a group photo with some residents of Ol Kalou who were presented with six-kilogram gas cylinders each on July 7, 2026.
"I wish to state that what Gachagua did was very bad. He can't treat Mt Kenya as his personal property. Any leaders must be allowed to visit Mt Kenya without censorship or seeking Gachagua's permission. Linda Mwananchi is part of the united opposition; Sifuna, Babu Owino, and all other opposition leaders have a common mission, which is one term," said the MP.
He also warned the DCP leader against unjustified attacks on the IEBC.
"We in ODM, under opposition leader Raila Odinga, spent all our lives fighting the IEBC. We sang and chanted against the commission, but we never won the elections. The surest way to lose a football match is to start stoning the referee even before the match begins. You won't even get a penalty. Let's only accuse the IEBC as an institution, not personalise wars against an individual," he said.
On their part, UDA blamed the DCP for planning to cause violence to disrupt the election.
Led by party candidate Muchina Nyaga and Laikipia East MP Mwangi Kiunjuri, UDA says the DCP has been fanning political chaos before later playing the victim.
"They destroyed our candidate's campaign materials. Those who did that are known; they were hired goons, but we told the police not to arrest them because that is what the DCP wants—to play the victim and solicit sympathy votes. We won't dance to their tune. I want them to witness as I win and celebrate when they are out there, not when they are in prison," said Mr Muchina.
MP Kiunjuri said the DCP is threatening voters perceived to be UDA supporters by sneaking leaflets into their houses.
"Those circulating the leaflets are known. We know them, and the police have their names, but we don't want them arrested. All we demand is peaceful campaigns," said Mr Kiunjuri.
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