The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
Related Articles
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has announced that the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) selection panel members will be officially gazetted by the following Tuesday.
This marks the beginning of the process to fill vacancies at the electoral body, vacant for over a year, amidst calls for its reconstitution by the younger generation, often referred to as Gen Z.
The selection panel composition will include two nominees from the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC), representing both the majority and minority parties respectively.
Additionally, the panel will comprise three nominees from the Political Parties Liaison Committee, including one not affiliated with a parliamentary party. Further, one nominee each will be chosen by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Kenya, with two more nominees selected by the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya.
Wetangula outlined the process, stating, “We have already arranged to conduct interviews for the nominees of the majority and minority parties this Friday.” He further indicated that by the end of the week, the nominating bodies would submit their selections to the panel.
“We anticipate finalizing the selection panel list by the end of the week, ready for the President’s appointment of a chairman from among them, to be gazetted no later than Tuesday next week to commence their duties,” Speaker Wetangula affirmed.
The IEBC has been without substantive commissioners since former Commissioner Wafula Chebukati and colleagues Boya Mulu and Abdi Guliye completed their non-renewable six-year terms.
The tenure of the Cherera Four—Juliana Cherera, Francis Wandera, Irene Masit, and Justus Nyang’aya—was cut short after they contested the 2022 presidential election results announced by Chebukati.
The IEBC selection panel is mandated to operate for 90 days, during which it will recruit and recommend nominees for presidential appointment.
The panel’s activities will include inviting applications, publishing applicant details, shortlisting, conducting public interviews, and presenting qualified candidates to the President for appointment, as specified in constitutional provisions.
