The Hold-Up in Establishing the IEBC

Nairobi, Kenya – The urgency to reconstitute the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has been underscored by a Supreme Court judge and addressed by the Deputy President, as the absence of a functional electoral body continues to stir debate and concern across Kenya.

In a speech on December 6, 2024, Supreme Court Judge Isaac Lenaola expressed his frustration over the delay in establishing the IEBC. Speaking candidly, Lenaola criticized the parliament for prioritizing politically driven legislation over the essential task of forming the electoral commission.

“I do not understand why our parliament—by the way, I am one of those judges who is not limited in expressing my mind. I speak my mind because mtanipeleka wapi. I do not understand why, for example, we are busy passing legislation very quickly on other subjects that are politically important, but we don’t look at what is extremely important for this country; the electoral commission,” Lenaola stated. “How can a country stand on its feet if it does not have an electoral commission? Elections are in 2027, this is 2024. When will this commission be prepared?”

He further urged Kenyans to leverage social media to press for the formation of the IEBC, suggesting the use of the hashtag #AppointIEBCNow to amplify their demands. “Why don’t we use social media to impact legislation? Why don’t we, for example, have #AppointIEBCNow and spread it?” he asked.

Lenaola also pointed out that the delay was partly due to the Azimio la Umoja coalition’s inability to appoint their representative to the selection panel. “Why is the IEBC not being constituted? Because Azimio can’t appoint their representative to the panel. Is that something to hold a country hostage for two years?” he questioned.

In response to Lenaola’s remarks and the growing social media campaign, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua addressed the issue today, clarifying the reasons behind the delay in the formation of the IEBC. He emphasized that a court injunction had stalled the process.

“Kuna Mambo Kidogo, ya IEBC, imeisemwa. And I just want to urge that the reason that there is no IEBC at the moment is because some Kenyans went to court and filed an injunction, and there’s a, there’s an injunction against the establishment of the, the recruitment panel that is supposed now to recruit IEBC commissioners,” Gachagua explained. “So we are asking the parties that have taken this matter to court to try and reach an out of court settlement, so that we can unblock that process and complete the reconstitution of the IEBC as soon as possible.”

The Deputy President also called on the political parties to resolve their differences and appoint their representatives to the selection panel. “There are some political parties also who have, who have not agreed on who will be part of the task force, or who will be part of the selection panel. We also want that, those political parties who have not agreed on who their representative will be to also go on and agree as soon as possible, and stop the blame game, so that we can have a new IEBC hopefully by the end of the year or at the latest by next month.”

Gachagua highlighted the importance of having a functional IEBC for maintaining political stability and concluding pending by-elections. “It is not good for a country with a vibrant democracy like Kenya to stay for such a long time without a functional electoral and boundaries commission,” he said.

As the debate continues, the pressure is mounting on all stakeholders to expedite the formation of the IEBC to ensure Kenya’s democratic processes remain intact and transparent ahead of the 2027 elections.