Raila Odinga rejects date for repeat presidential poll

Raila rejects date for repeat election

What you need to know:

  • Mr Odinga also reiterated his call for staff and system changes at the at the commission before the election is held.

  • He said there would be no elections on August 17 if there are no major changes at the electoral commission.
  • He particularly demanded audit of technology used to transmit election results.

National Super Alliance (Nasa) leader Raila Odinga has rejected the October 17 date set by the electoral commission for the repeat presidential poll.

Mr Odinga on Tuesday said he would not accept the date because the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) failed to consult him and other stakeholder as stipulated in law.

GUARANTEES

The date, he claimed, was set by the Jubilee Party and not IEBC.

Speaking at Wilson Airport in Nairobi, Mr Odinga, who ran for State House for the fourth time on August 8, also demanded legal and constitutional guarantees from IEBC that the repeat poll will be free and fair before the commission carries on with its preparations.

Accompanied by his running mate Kalonzo Musyoka and co-principals Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetang'ula, Mr Odinga said IEBC had not complied with the court order of conducting "a free, fair and verifiable election".

He reiterated his call for staff and system changes at the at the commission, saying there would be no repeat election if the changes are not done.

He particularly demanded audit of technology used to transmit election results.

THE LAW

"It is therefore inappropriate and foolhardy for IEBC to embark on the planning of a fresh elections without full compliance with the Supreme Court orders and in the redeployment of technology in the fresh presidential election,” he said.

“We therefore demand audit of technology in full compliance with the law.”

Mr Odinga also wants a review of the register of voters and polling stations, saying there were discrepancies in the voters roll during the August 8 poll.

"It is important to have full clarity in relation to the voters register and the polling stations," he said.

The opposition also wants IEBC to give access and to publish all reports of the transaction logs of persons who used the Kenya Integrated Electoral Management System and those identified through complementary methods.

TOP COURT

"There will be no elections on the 17th unless these our demands are met," Mr Odinga said.

The Nasa leaders spoke as they prepared to leave for Kisii and Nyamira to chase votes.

Their demands come days after the Supreme Court indicted IEBC, quashed the August 8 presidential poll and ordered a fresh one within 60 days.

The top court in the land found that IEBC did not conduct the election in accordance with the Constitution and Elections Act.