As Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission chairman Wafula Chebukati prepares to exit after six years at the helm, he is proving to be a divisive figure on the national political scene.
President William Ruto this week threw his weight behind him by revealing that there was a plot to abduct and kill the electoral agency boss before the announcement of the August 9, 2022, presidential election results. The plot, he claimed, aimed at preventing the IEBC chief from announcing the correct election results.
On the other hand, Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition party’s flag bearer Raila Odinga and his team have accused Mr Chebukati of manipulating the election in favour of President Ruto. The raging standoff is not in the interest of the majority of ordinary Kenyans, who wish to go on with their lives.
Also trending is a ‘whistleblower’s’ claim that Mr Odinga actually defeated Dr Ruto. But all this is not helping matters. After all, the Supreme Court pronounced itself on this issue, endorsing the election of President Ruto.
But, Justice Martha Koome did not endear herself to Mr Odinga’s supporters for dismissing his presidential election petition as “hot air”, a “red herring” and “wild goose chase”, further inflaming the political environment.
Mr Chebukati was at the helm in 2017, when the apex court nullified the re-election of then-President Uhuru Kenyatta in an exercise that had been lauded by international observers as having been conducted peacefully.
However, then Chief Justice David Maraga and his fellow judges declared the result “invalid, null and void”, agreeing with the petitioner that the vote had been electronically manipulated to ensure that President Kenyatta won. T
he Chebukati-led commission was found to have “committed irregularities and illegalities in the transmission of results”. But, rather strangely, he was not even sanctioned.
The controversy shows that elections remain a tricky affair for the country. But everything must not come to a standstill over political rivalry. If anyone has credible information, they should table it in court or shut up and prepare for the 2027 elections.
