Members of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee on Wednesday criticised the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) for misguided budgetary priorities.....CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
The MPs called out the commission after it requested Ksh2.6 billion to cater for pending bills. This led to tough questioning from the MPs.
According to a statement issued by the National Assembly, a large portion of the funds was used to pay seven law firms hired to offer legal advice on the delimitation of boundaries and for the IEBC Amendment Bill.
“There is a clear failure by the IEBC administration in exercising prudence. You cannot procure these services without the budget. You need to read the mood of the country,” Gatanga MP Edward Muiru stated.
IEBC is mandated to review the names and boundaries of constituencies at intervals of not less than eight years and not more than 12 years. Each review should be completed at least 12 months before a general election of members of Parliament.
The last review was on March 2012 and the other was scheduled for March 2024. On the other hand, the IEBC amendment bill was enacted recently by President William Ruto.
The bill was drafted to pave the way for hiring new electoral commissioners after the Chairperson and commissioners retired and resigned in 2022 and 2023. Additionally, with the bill signed into law, the selection panel for the appointment of new IEBC commissioners will be established.
“I concur with leaders who have said there must be professionalism and integrity as part of the cardinal principles of the men and women who will be charged with overseeing our elections,” the Head of State stated.
The committee also held talks with other state officials and state agencies including the State Department for Correctional Services Principal Secretary Salome Muhia, the Judicial Service Commission, the Judiciary, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), and the Kenya Human Rights Commission.
Notably, these agencies also called upon the government to increase the revenue allocation arguing that the recent budget cuts would hinder operations…CONTINUE READING>>
