Aspirants eyeing Member of County Assembly (MCA) seats do not need a university degree to vie, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has directed.
According to the Wafula Chebukati-led electoral agency, only aspirants seeking the presidency, deputy presidency, governorship and deputy governorship must have a degree to contest in the August 9 elections.
The fate of those seeking parliamentary seats still hangs in the balance, but the verdict will be out once a ruling on a case in court is made.
IEBC acting Chief Executive Marjan Hussein Marjan said this while responding to a query by Deputy President William Ruto’s UDA on January 4, requesting the commission to clarify on aspirants’ qualifications and requirements for elective positions.
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The party is preparing for a nomination exercise on February 28, and aspirants will be required to comply with IEBC guidelines.
In a response to the letter, Marjan said Section 22 of the Elections Act, 2011 required that MPs and MCAs possess a degree from a university recognised in Kenya.
He, however, said the High Court, in a judgement dated October 15, 2021, in Nairobi High Court Constitutional Petition NO. E229 of 2021, declared Section 22(1)(6) (Gi) of the Elections Act unconstitutional.
“For clarity, the court effectively nullified the requirement that a person must possess a degree from a university recognised in Kenya to qualify to be MCA. In the forgoing circumstance, there is no educational requirement in respect of MCA aspirants,” he said.
High Court Judge Anthony Mrima held that Parliament never invited the public to participate and proceeded to enact the “discriminatory law” requiring MP and MCA aspirants to have degrees.
