The former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) has expressed worries about the credibility of the 2027 general elections after he claimed that the current commissioners who are undergoing interviews are not ready to conduct general elections.
Speaking during a discussion on the election in the country on Spice FM on Tuesday, Oswago alleged that the commissioners do not have enough time to prepare to undertake a by-election, let alone a general election.
''If you ask me, never should you ask an individual to run an election who has not had a minimum of two years of preparation, particularly as a commissioner. We have done this before several times in Kenya and have always failed," Oswago revealed.
According to Oswago, it requires a minimum of two years for a newly appointed commissioner to be sufficiently inducted and able to run an election.
''An election is run by a process of apprenticeship and incrementalism, you learn by doing the job, so picking up a newbie who has never run an election and then asking them to do so the next day is not the way it is done,'' he further explained.
The former CEO revealed that this is one of the major reasons why the elections in Kenya end up in shambles, because of the under-preparedness.
According to Oswago, despite having a capable technical staff below the directing level who can deal with technical issues, the commissioners must be involved, according to the law, to provide guidance, oversight, strategy, and supervision.
With less than two years until the general election, Oswago cautioned that Kenya's primary focus should be on ensuring a credible and legitimate 2027 election, rather than rushing into it unprepared.
His sentiments come barely three days before the completion of the ongoing interviews for candidates who had been shortlisted for the six IEBC commissioner jobs.
The interviews, which have been running for the better part of April, are expected to end on Friday, April 25. The panel had shortlisted 11 candidates for the chairperson position and 105 for the members of the commission positions.
After the IEBC commissioner interviews, the selection panel, chaired by Nelson Makanda, will evaluate the candidates based on their experience, integrity, and strategic vision.
The shortlisted names will then be forwarded to President William Ruto for final approval and gazettment.
