Kenya is headed for major political reforms this year, with the electoral commission poised for a review, politicians from the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party calling for an investigation into the latest presidential election and the opposition demanding an audit of the ballot box.
Three election commissioners, including the chairman of the Independent Election and Boundary Commission (IEBC), Wafula Chebukati, are expected to retire on January 17, pushing the election management body into leadership limbo.
Three of the four officials suspended by President William Ruto for their alleged role in a conspiracy to nullify his 2022 election victory resigned last month, while one remains suspended while appearing before a court appointed to investigate them.
The imminent departure from the commission of Chebukati, a divisive figure hailed as a hero by the country’s current ruling elite and reviled by the opposition, will mark the end of a checkered six-year tenure during which he oversaw two hotly contested presidential elections whose results They were contested in the Supreme Court.
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He is set to go as the current administration’s darling for his personal role in declaring Ruto president despite alleged pressure not to do so from the alleged conspirators, a role for which he was rewarded with the highest honor. civilian national conferred by the president last month.
But you will leave behind a commission that needs a reputation overhaul and repair.
Fallout within the commission during the latest election fueled anxiety in the country after the four commissioners, led by then-Vice President Juliana Cherera, repudiated Chebukati’s declared results, calling the vote-counting process opaque.
Factional fights over takeovers and leadership in 2017 also culminated in the acrimonious departures of four former commissioners, further damaging the polling agency’s reputation, already marred by the Supreme Court’s indictment for botching that year’s election. whose results were annulled.
The reconstitution of the commission in the coming months is likely to raise the political temperature in the country, since the opposition has already accused President Ruto of trying to influence the selection of new friendly officials to pave his way to re-election in 2027.
The constitution requires the president to appoint a selection panel for new commissioners, but after recent controversies, the opposition will most likely stick with legal reforms to gain representation from political parties and other interest groups.
In its ruling on the petition challenging President Ruto’s victory, the Supreme Court recommended a series of reforms to the country’s electoral management, including defined roles for the president and IEBC commissioners to prevent a repeat of the ecstatic moments. before the declaration of the last presidential election. election results.
The judges also proposed changes to the rights of access to the IEBC’s results storage and transmission systems to reduce suspicions about the integrity of the vote count.
More reform proposals could also hit the arena via the judicial tribunal report investigating the conduct of the four commissioners who raised doubts about the validity of the result of the last presidential election.
With both ruling party and opposition politicians currently pushing for a more thorough investigation of the last election in some form (a commission of inquiry or audit), 2023 is already shaping up to be the year of major reforms in Kenya.
President Ruto did not commit to his support for a commission of inquiry in a media interview earlier this week despite alleging that key institutions, including the military, were involved in the conspiracy to overturn the results.
But most of the research’s most vocal proponents are politicians from their Rift Valley stronghold, a popular sounding board for their political positions.
