Electoral commission chairperson Wafula Chebukati has welcomed President William Ruto’s move to gazette vacant positions in the agency.
President Ruto on October 21 declared vacancies at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) – those of Mr Chebukati and commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu – as their six-year non-renewable terms end in January 2023.
Reacting for the first time to Dr Ruto’s decision, Mr Chebukati said starting the hiring process now will ensure a smooth transition at the IEBC.
“I wish to welcome the decision to gazette impending vacancies for the positions of IEBC Chairperson and two Commissioners which will officially be vacant from 18/1/2023,” Mr Chebukati wrote on Twitter.
“This will ensure [a] smooth transition and retention of institutional memory which has previously not been the case.”
Mr Chebukati was at the forefront pushing for staggered terms for IEBC commissioners, arguing that this would promote synergy and ensure that the agency does not lack commissioners at any one time.
In a 2017 post-election report, Mr Chebukati advised against hiring commissioners close to an election because this would leave little time to build synergy and plan for polls at the same time.
“The recruitment of IEBC commissioners should be staggered to ensure transfer of knowledge, institutional memory and growth," Mr Chebukati said in his memorandum, insisting that the appointment of commissioners continue to be based on gender, ethnic and regional considerations to ensure inclusivity.
Anticipated IEBC vacancies
Led by Wiper Democratic Movement Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, the opposition viewed it as suspicious that Mr Chebukati was taking an ‘early retirement’ when the IEBC was planning to oversee pending by-elections.
Mr Musyoka even sensationally claimed that this was part of a wider plot by Mr Chebukati to influence some decisions before he leaves office.
“Ask yourself why Chebukati pushed the by-elections [to] December 8, just to make sure that perhaps he has some duty to perform, maybe for a friend before he leaves office,” Mr Musyoka said.
He spoke in Kisumu on Sunday after attending a church service at Deliverance Church in Migosi estate.
Mr Musyoka also warned the IEBC against touching the four commissioners who clashed with Mr Chebukati during the announcement of the presidential election results in August.
The four are Mr Francis Wanderi, Ms Irene Masit, Mr Justus Nyang’aya and vice-chair Juliana Cherera.
The four were appointed in September 2021, meaning they still have until September 2027 at the agency.
Last month, Mr Odinga, speaking after returning from Zanzibar, declared a push for major institutional reforms at the Judiciary and the IEBC.
The Azimio coalition set a 2024 deadline for the planned reforms, which some officials have indicated could include sacking the entire IEBC team and having another one in place at least three years to the 2027 General Election.
Some of the proposed changes are reverting to purely manual voting and transmission of results (the IEBC now uses a hybrid manual voting and electronic transmission system) and redefining the role of presiding officers in declaring poll results.
