IEBC is not prepared for polls Civil Society

The civil society have cast doubt on the preparedness of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to hold the much anticipated August 8 General Election.

During a meeting in Nairobi on Tuesday, May 16 the organizations – which included the Africog, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) and the Independent Medico Legal Unit – stated that they were not convinced that the electoral body had done enough to prevent a potential clash after the poll.

They said IEBC has not been fully transparent in the process of voter listing and verification, advising the commission to learn from the mistakes of the Isaac Hassan-led team.

“Voter verification should not be a matter of sending an SMS only, Kenyans should be given a right to inspect the entire IEBC voter register keenly on a personal basis at their convenience,” said Africog Executive Director, Gladwell Otieno.

IEBC was also advised to be cautious and make sure that Electronic Voter Identification kits do not fail come August 8. This, the consortium argued, will help in the credibility of eligible voters participating in the exercise.

On their part, IEBC through their representative in the meeting, Chris Musando, disputed the claims insisting that they are ready much ready to hold credible polls.