Senator calls for postponement of 2017 polls

Nyamira Senator Kennedy Mong’are now wants the next General Election pushed forward by at least one year, arguing that this postponement would ensure that proper preparations are made.

Mong’are said that instead of preparing for elections, the country should ready itself for a referendum because, constitutionally, election dates can only be changed by way of referendum.

The Senator said that IEBC did not have the funds needed to carry out the 2017 polls, arguing that the budget deficiency could hamper the commission’s ability to conduct free and fair elections.

He also cited the delayed appointment of new IEBC commissions – following the exit of Isaac Hassan’s team – as another reason why the polls should be postponed, adding that current preparations are illegal.

“The law is very clear that elections must be prepared by a commission, and not the people who are doing it illegally. Right now, we don’t have an elections commission and let those who are preparing for the polls are engaging in a nullity,” he said.

Mong’are went on to say that the current happenings fly in the face of Justice Kreigler’s recommendations. Kreigler, in his report on the contested 2007/2008 polls, warned against organizing elections with a new commission which has not been in office for at least two years.

Addressing the media in Kisii on Saturday, Mong’are said Kenyans must ask themselves whether they want a proper election or a hurriedly-organised poll.

The Senator said that the chaos that surrounded the exit of the IEBC commissioners points at the possibility of a repeat of the 207/2008 post-poll violence.

He asked the clergy and the diplomatic community to push for the postponement of the polls, adding that: “The next General Elections should be held in March 2018.”