Let reason prevail to end impasse on electoral agency

President Uhuru Kenyatta has stepped in to provide leadership on how to unlock the impasse on the electoral commission.

His action, which came hot on heels of the CORD weekly demonstrations, left no doubt that he is really committed to secure Kenya’s peace and stability. When he took the oath of office following his victory in the 2013 presidential election, he promised to unite the country.

Had CORD leaders realised he was making good progress and resorted to street demonstrations to blight his presidency? Nobody knows whether or not the allegations they have raised against the IEBC hold any water. One would expect CORD to use the right channels to present their grievances. How come they are avoiding this route?

Yes, I agree that the President can engage them in talks but ultimately the crisis would be handled by Parliament because this is what the Constitution states. Why do they oppose this reality?

The President has always stated he took the oath of office to uphold, defend and protect the Constitution.

Well, in his interventions to resolve the IEBC crisis, the President agreed on the need to form a Parliamentary Select Committee to handle the matter. He spoke after holding a meeting with the religious leaders and the speakers of the two Houses of Parliament.

The terms of reference for the committee formed in accordance to the relevant provisions of Parliament’s Standing Orders would be to conduct public hearings and prepare a Bill. The stakeholders, politicians and Kenyans will be invited to present their views on electoral reforms. The committee will later harmonise the views/proposals and present to Parliament for debate and adoption.

Many Kenyans still believe that the root cause of bad blood pitting CORD and Issack Hassan-led electoral commission is hinged on the outcome of 2013 presidential elections. The CORD flag bearer and then Prime Minister Raila Odinga believed that he had won the elections but he was rigged out.

To date, Raila has never lost steam in his push to disband the IEBC.

CORD has in recent past taken its battle with the IEBC commissioners to a new height. The leaders would replay the allegations of their involvement in ‘chicken gate scandal’ and irregular procurement of election equipment. Based on this, they would argue that the commission cannot be relied upon to conduct free, fair and credible elections in 2017. It is worth noting these allegations have not been proved beyond reasonable doubt.

For now, the issue of IEBC is in the court of Parliamentary Select Committee. Kenyans have come a long way. So, I would not expect them to be swayed by politicians to present biased and partisan submissions to the committee when the public hearings start. As Kenyans, we should bear in mind that Kenya is bigger than an individual. Leaders come and go but our beloved motherland will remain.