IEBC kicks off massive voter registration

The campaign to register en mass at least four million voters in 30 days was launched Monday morning in Nairobi’s Kamukunji area.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) led by its chair Ahmed Issack Hassan rallied Nairobi residents to register as voters even as he extended an olive branch to the opposition coalition leaders for a meeting to iron out their concerns.

“Those registered in 2013 do not need to register again, unless if you want to change your polling station,” said Hassan.

The exercise will be conducted in all the 1,450 county assembly wards by a total of 5,576 registration clerks. The number of the registration clerks was doubled after the European Union through UNDP granted the electoral body an additional 560 million shillings.

“There are enough machines. The problem will, in fact, be the people to be registered. And I’m inviting all the political leaders to come see us so that we iron out the issues.”

Fears that some potential voters in some regions will be disenfranchised by the movement of the BVR kits across the wards have been allayed through the provision of a comprehensive timetable of when and where the kits will be stationed during the 30 days. The stations will be opened on a daily basis including on weekends.

A similar exercise has been rolled out across the country even as IEBC urges Kenyans to go against their peculiar habits of the last minute rush. The sensitization will be carried out through community radio stations as well as elected leaders and religious leaders.