IEBC registers 47,000 voters in Central Eastern in seven days

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has registered 47,000 new voters in the Central Eastern region in the last seven days.

Central Eastern region comprises of Meru, Tharaka-Nithi and Embu counties where the commission is targeting to list about 900,000 voters.

Speaking in Meru Town after a meeting with members of Mt Kenya Youth Caucus on Monday, IEBC Regional Elections Coordinator Aluisia Kanini said residents are not responding to the registration as expected.

“People are not registering as we anticipated because the numbers are very low in some days. We expect to have more than 50,000 new voters when we include Monday’s numbers. We call upon unregistered residents to realise that it is their constitutional mandate to vote,” Ms Kanini said.

She said they are working closely with all stakeholders to ensure they meet the target by the end of registration on February 14.

Land Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi, who has been spearheading the voter registration sensitisation in the region, urged IEBC clerks to reach out to the potential voters.

“We are taking views from various stakeholders and we recommend that some registration centres be stationary. However, clerks can take advantage of colleges and university campuses to reach to the unregistered,” Prof Kaimenyi said.

Mt Kenya Youth Caucus chairman Linford Mutembei said the group will sensitise the youth on the need to register as voters in time.