Chebukati orders suspension of IEBC ICT chief James Muhati

What you need to know:

  • In an internal memo, Mr Chebukati has ordered CEO Ezra Chiloba to suspend ICT Director James Muhati, ICT Coordinator Paul Mugo and ICT officer Boniface Wamae.
  • He says the three fell short of assisting the commission successfully discharge “its collegial and constitutionally enshrined mandate”.

IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati has ordered suspension of three officers in the ICT directorate in what he says is an effort to restore waning public confidence in the commission’s ability to prepare and hold a credible repeat presidential election.

In an internal memo, Mr Chebukati has ordered CEO Ezra Chiloba to suspend ICT Director James Muhati, ICT Coordinator Paul Mugo and ICT officer Boniface Wamae.

'FAILURE'

He says the three fell short of assisting the commission successfully discharge “its collegial and constitutionally enshrined mandate”.

“This suspension is necessary to not just restore the waning public confidence in the commission’s ability to prepare and deliver credible polls but also assert the integrity and fidelity of the commission to the rule of law,” Mr Chebukati writes in the memo.

Mr Muhati and the two officers were in charge of the commission’s Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) platform during the August 8 General Election and Mr Chebukati notes that the ICT security framework and security measures deployed failed to eliminate the risk of external interference with the commission’s systems.

SERVERS

Mr Chebukati says the framework further failed to address internal risks posed by ICT officers, somewhat acquiring super administrator access to server that was their day-to-day operational server.

“In your subject memo, you have not responded as to why a server that was meant for day-to-day operations by staff was used for official purpose of transmitting forms 34Bs,” Mr Chebukati tells Mr Chiloba in the memo.

Mr Chebukati further tells the CEO that the plenary of the commission had approved usage of SFTP as well as usage of a secure IP address.

The plenary had further considered the creation of read-only account for use by the chairperson designated as [email protected] and another— [email protected].

SECOND TIME

“No proposal was ever tabled or considered in establishing an account in the personal names of the chairperson/NRO (National returning officer),” he says.

If Mr Chiloba will act on the directive, it will be Mr Muhati’s second suspension this year.

He was sent on a compulsory leave on May 26 after he was accused of sabotage.

He was accused of refusing to cooperate in the audit of the commission’s ICT systems in readiness for the August 8 General Election.

Mr Muhati was replaced by his deputy at the time Chris Msando, was murdered and his body dumped in a thicket in Kikuyu a few days to the high-stakes poll.