Deputy Presidential debate set for Tuesday, July 19

The Deputy Presidential debate will be held on Tuesday, July 19, at the Catholic University for Eastern Africa (CUEA) in Karen, Nairobi.

Like the just-concluded Nairobi governorship debate, the Tuesday one, scheduled to begin at 5.00 pm will also take place in two parts.

The first tier will involve running mates who have scored less than five per cent in recent opinion polls, while the second tier will include candidates whose popularity ratings stand above five per cent.

According to the debate secretariat, the first round of the debate will take place from 6:00 pm-7.30 pm while the second debate will be on air from 8:00 pm to 9.30 pm.

The first tier will be moderated by TV47 News Anchor Linda Alela, and KBC’s John Jacob Kioria, while the second tier will be moderated by KTN’s Sophia Wanuna and NTV’s James Smart.

Trevor Ombija of Citizen TV will be the panel moderators of both debates.

“The moderators have been selected based on rigorous criteria that, among other things, endear the principles of impartiality, fairness and objectivity, a strong understanding of the Kenyan political landscape and the major issues of this election,” the presidential debates secretariat head, Clifford Machoka said.

The moderators are to select the questions to ask the candidates, and shall not share the same. They are also prohibited from meeting with the candidates prior to the debate.

Kenyans can expect running mates of the four cleared presidential candidates to show up on Tuesday, including Agano’s Ruth Mutua, Rigathi Gachagua of the United Democratic Alliance, Justin Wamae of Roots Party, and Martha Karua of Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya Alliance.

The debate will be broadcast and streamed by all media houses in Kenya.