Former CS behind IEBC voter register manipulation, says Raila

Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga has claimed a former Cabinet Secretary is the mastermind of an elaborate voter listing fraud in the ongoing mass voter registration exercise.

Mr Odinga alleged the opposition had discovered registration of persons with strange national identification (ID) numbers in a major syndicate masterminded by a person he claimed was a former cabinet secretary and several former IEBC staff.

He did not name the said former minister but revealed he is among those fired by President Uhuru Kenyatta over corruption claims.

He presented a list of 19 strange ID numbers registered in single and double digits to BVR clerks at Lavington Primary School in Karen where the names were confirmed to have been registered.

“Today, we are here to demonstrate that the IEBC is currently registering foreigners and strangers to vote in the August 2017 election,” said Mr Odinga.

He added: “Our investigation has confirmed that numbers that do not qualify as identity card numbers have been used to register voters in parts of the country and that is responsible for what is being presented as high turnout in voter registration in those regions.”

Persons by the names Gitonga Wilson Kimathii, Kanja Julius Ngede, Kihinge Evans Kariuki, Kirinya Victoria Gatwiri, Mu Ko, Mugara Duncan, Muia Mbinya, Wanjiru Caroline Nduta were found to have been registered under document identification number 2.

The former prime minister provided 19 ID numbers he claimed had been used to register strangers.

Such numbers do not exist at the National Registrar of Persons database and it is not clear how the number was used to register different persons and whether the named individuals exist.

“We have information that the doctoring of the IEBC registration software was done intentionally by former employees of IEBC who are aliened to Jubilee as a way to ensure Jubilee strongholds register more voters,” Mr Odinga said.

Mr Odinga said that a senior Jubilee official was coordinating the fraudulent registration and that the former cabinet minister is working from the said official’s home to feed the IEBC data base with foreign and none existent voters.

Said Mr Odinga: “But it is also possible that the names popping up under the fake ID numbers may be non-existent. These could be virtual voters, non-existent human beings being included in the IEBC register to create room for ballot stuffing during elections.”

Mr Odinga said that the manipulation was done to ensure that single digit number can be used to register foreigners or even those without IDs.

He challenged the IEBC to come clean on the matter and said the opposition will insist on a thoroughly audited voters’ list.