New boundaries may be gazetted Friday

The row over the new list of constituencies created by the Interim Independent Boundaries Review Commission could be resolved on Friday.

This emerged as reports from within government indicated that the 80 new electoral areas will be gazetted before the end of the day.

A draft gazette notice seen by the Nation contains the names of the new constituencies and the wards that fall in them.

A top official at the IIBRC, who cannot be quoted because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that they were still dealing with the issue and the gazettement was not possible due to the court orders.

President Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and the Cabinet committee on the implementation of the Constitution are set to meet on Friday to find a solution to the row that has resulted in three court cases by MPs and a businessman.

Sources said the President and the PM, concerned with the divisive acrimony that the new list of constituencies has created, stepped in on Thursday seeking to find an amicable solution to the dispute.

The two leaders met the IIBRC team led by chairman Andrew Ligale at Harambee House on Thursday for two hours as 169 MPs threatened to throw out the nominees to the Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution and the Commission on Revenue Allocation in Parliament.

Members of the Cabinet committee on the implementation of the Constitution — made up of ministers who are lawyers — also attended the session which was said to have initially generated arguments.

Those close to the meeting said Mr Ligale tabled before the meeting the list of the new constituencies and explained the various scenarios that his commission explored and how they arrived at the distribution of the extra 80 vote areas.

Concern was raised over the manner in which he created constituencies in Nairobi, Central, Western and Coast counties.

Questions were also raised on the constitutionality of the commission’s decision to attempt to gazette the list, an issue that has drawn contradicting positions from Justice minister Mutula Kilonzo and Attorney-General Amos Wako.

Sources said after the two-hour meeting, Mr Ligale was asked to go and make amends in areas where their leaders had questioned his approach and bring the new list today before the meeting for consideration.

President Kibaki and Mr Odinga, it was understood, were of the opinion that there was no need for members of the same government to engage in acrimonious exchanges over the new constituencies. The matter, they said, should be resolved in an amicable manner.

Earlier in the morning, a section of MPs from Central Kenya opposed to the distribution of the new seats, met at Panafric Hotel and hardened their stand. Sources at the meeting said they demanded that Mr Ligale’s team places more emphasis on the “one man one vote” formula.

At the same time, MPs backing the new areas, led by deputy Speaker Farah Maalim, gave the President and the PM two hours to present the gazette notice bearing the new constituencies to Parliament or else the House will reject the nominees to the vital Constitution implementation commissions.