IEBC announces plans to hire 300,000 temporary workers ahead of August 9 general elections

The Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) announces plans to hire 300,000 temporary workers ahead of August 9 general elections

The Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has announced that it will recruit 300,000 staff ahead of the August 9 elections.

Speaking at the Anglican Church Bishops and Senior Clergy Conference of Kenya, IEBC President Wafula Chebukati said that the commission will spend Ksh6 billion on the exercise.

Chebucati noted at the same time that the electoral agency was keen to ensure that elections were free and fair and that part of those efforts was to ensure adequate manpower.

Chebulati was challenged by Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit, the Anglican Church of Kenya, who said the electoral agency needed adequate preparation for the August elections.

Sapit also noted that the IEBC credits Kenyans with a transparent matching process of results at all levels. He said that the poll agency should instil confidence in the public to conduct reliable elections.

Archbishop Sapit explained that early preparations for the August elections would allow the commission to hold peaceful elections.

Chebucati also addressed the summons he has issued to politicians on reckless talk. He said the Commission was not powerless despite the High Court ruling that it did not have the right to hear such cases.

High Court Judge Anthony Mrima initially restrained the IEBC from proceeding to hear vote-rigging cases against Murang’a women’s representative Sabina Chege and Gatundu South MP Musa Kuria.

IEBC, however, is yet to announce the commencement of the recruitment process. In March, the electoral agency was forced to address the issue after a fake advertisement asked Kenyans to apply for non-existent job positions.

The commission rejected the advert by warning Kenyans through their social media accounts. The fake notice claimed that the IEBC was to recruit 262,665 polling and counting clerks before the elections.