Respect IEBC's mandate, Hassan tells politicians

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman Issack Hassan has asked politicians to respect the body’s constitutional mandate to organise elections.

Mr Hassan openly clashed with Narc Kenya chairperson Martha Karua over the March 4, 2013 elections date Thursday.

Ms Karua had argued that the IEBC, the Judiciary and the Executive had violated Kenyan’s right to a “free and fair election cycle” by pushing the election to next year. She added that this violated both the international election laws and the Constitution.

“The internationally accepted law is that citizens should have a free and fair electoral cycle. I feel that my right to have an election every five years has been violated by pushing the election date to the sixth year,” Ms Karua said.

But in response, Mr Hassan said that the IEBC and Kenyans live by “the rule of law” and the setting of the March election date was in respect to the High Court ruling and therefore was lawful. He also told politicians to quit playing to “the public gallery” on whether Kenyans living abroad will participate in the elections.

“The constitutionally mandated body to register voters and run elections is IEBC and we have a proper policy on this. We have made it clear that the Diaspora will vote in the election and we will soon be talking to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over how this is to be done,” Mr Hassan said during the launch of an election handbook prepared by the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa at the Hilton Hotel in Nairobi.

He said that the IEBC would register Kenyans living abroad and who wish to participate in the polls. He added that they would vote for their presidential candidate of choice in Kenyan embassies during polling that will be conducted by IEBC staff.

“We know there are Kenyans who want to be allowed to vote in various stations especially in the US. But as per the Constitution, ensuring that all Kenyans participate in elections is to be done progressively,” Mr Hassan said.

Mr Hassan said that with all the necessary laws now in place, the IEBC is working on finalising preparations for the elections. He added that the commission aims at ensuring that its puts in place a system that will “guarantee transparency and credibility in all the electoral processes".

The electoral boss also said that it would not be of any use for Kenya to have comprehensive laws yet its citizens do not have the knowledge or appreciation of the laws.

“It is therefore a responsibility, not only of the Commission, but also of every agency dealing with elections. Both state and non-state actors must ensure that the public is informed of these laws to enable them exercise their Constitutional right to participate in political life,” Mr Hassan said.

The handbook summarises issues relating to elections contained in the Constitution, the Elections Act, the IEBC Act and the Political Parties Act. It also has snapshots of international laws relating to the elections and other political processes that Kenya has ratified.