Cord’s Okoa Kenya referendum bid flops

Opposition leaders Moses Wetang'ula (right) Raila Odinga and James Orengo addressing the media outside Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) offices at Anniversary Towers on February 16, 2016. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Commission chairman Ahmed Issack Hassan said analysis of the data presented by the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) showed that only 891,598 registered voters supported the initiative from the signatures presented.
  • This comes just a day after Opposition leaders Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetang’ula accused the electoral body of colluding with government officials to undermine their intended referendum.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) on Tuesday declared that the Okoa Kenya proposal to amend the Constitution had collapsed for failing to meet required threshold of a million signatures.

Commission chairman Ahmed Issack Hassan said analysis of the data presented by the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) showed that only 891,598 registered voters supported the initiative from the signatures presented.

“This falls short of the one million registered voters required by law,” said Mr Hassan in a statement sent to newsrooms.

“Therefore, the Commission wishes to declare that the OKOA Kenya proposal to amend the constitution initiative has collapsed by operation of the law,” he added.

This comes just a day after Opposition leaders Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetang’ula accused the electoral body of colluding with government officials to undermine their intended referendum.

The Opposition was pushing for the referendum to be held in April with a raft of proposals including increase in funds allocated to counties.

Read Okoa Kenya reduces issues on referendum query for more on what the Opposition wanted in their push for a referendum.

The proposal also sought the establishment of a Ward Development Fund, as a way of enticing Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) to support the initiative as they, MCAs, had been vigorously agitating for.