BY WINSTONE MUSISI
The High Court in Eldoret has today issued a prohibitive order to Wafula Chebukati-led Independent and Electoral Boundary Commission (IEBC) against concluding the enhanced massive voter registration exercise in the country.
Justice Eric Ogolla directed IEBC to continue voter registration exercise following a petition that was filed at the court under certificate of urgency by an Eldoret based activist Patrick Cherono pending the hearing of the matter inter-parties slated for November 9th.
Cherono, through his lawyer Kaira Nabesenge had sued the IEBC and the National Assembly for closing the registration of eligible voters who have turned 18 years and above of age across the country.
Voters likely to be locked out
Cherono had argued that thousands of voters were likely to be locked out from exercising their democratic rights to elect leaders of their choice in the 2022 general election if the IEBC goes ahead to conclude the enhanced voter registration exercise.
He said the IEBC has only managed to enlist barely 800,000 voters against the target of 4. Million new voters adding that by concluding the exercise on Tuesday, it would be tantamount to locking out more youths who have just acquired new identity cards.
While issuing the order, Justice Ogolla who certified the matter as urgent asked the IEBC not close the voter registrations exercise slated for closure on 2nd November, 2021.
“I order that the IEBC and the National Assembly be served before the matter is heard interpartes on 9th November, 2021,” Justice Ogolla directed.
Domestic rights
He argued it was prudent for the National Assembly to set aside enough funds to enable the IEBC enlist more voters so that they can exercise their democratic rights to elect leaders of their choice at the next polls.
The High court order comes in the wake of calls by a cross-section of leaders and citizens among them the leader of the Amani National Congress Musalia Mudavadi who have urged the National Assembly to increase the IEBC’s budget to allow for the extension of the voter registration exercise.
According to the 2022 presidential hopeful, a majority of Kenyans who want to exercise their democratic rights by voting in 2022 now risk missing out with the period that had been allocated running out.
Echoing the same sentiment were ODM MPs and other advocacy organizations for the exercise to be extended by two months.
Ensure that registration kits are available
Opiyo Wandayi, the Chairman of the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee, led the opposition members in demanding that the IEBC promptly resubmit budget plans to support a proper mass voter registration effort.
The Ugunja MP asked that the commission ensure that registration kits are available at each polling location.
The Ugunja MP asked that the commission ensure that registration kits are available at each polling location.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission previously announced that the exercise would not be extended, on account of the tight budget.
This is what the commission can afford
The commission’s chair, Wafula Chebukati said the commission was allocated Ksh1.2 billion out of the Ksh. 4 billion it had requested for the exercise that is currently underway.
“After November 2, we will not have money to extend the voter registration exercise. The commission can only afford to conduct mass registration for 30 days,” said Chebukati.
The electoral body had registered a paltry 17 percent of its target by last week, a long way to go with only days remaining to the closure of the exercise.
Last Monday, only 760,000 Kenyans had registered in the ongoing mass voter registration exercise, against a target of 4.5 million new voters by the end of the week.