Ruto Breaks Silence Over IEBC Appointments

An image of Ruto
Deputy President William Ruto speaking to a gathering at the Kiritiri Market after a prayer service at the Kiritiri Catholic Church, Mbeere South, Embu County on Sunday 18 October 2020.
Twitter

Deputy President William Ruto on Sunday, October 18, broke his silence over the planned Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) reshuffle.

Ruto was addressing a gathering after attending a prayer service at the Kiritiri Catholic Church, Mbeere South, Embu County.

The DP appeared to aim a dig at former Prime Minister Raila Odinga by claiming that even if his brother Oburu Odinga was to be appointed the commission's chairman, he would not be shaken.

Deputy President William Ruto attends a service at Africa Inland Church in Machakos on Sunday, October 11, 2020.
Deputy President William Ruto attends a service at Africa Inland Church in Machakos on Sunday, October 11, 2020.
File

"Many people are struggling, yet they want to conduct an IEBC reshuffle. They want to appoint new commissioners at IEBC. I have no problem with IEBC. I know that elections are determined by the people at polling stations.

"I've heard people say that Ruto has been outsmarted in the IEBC issues, even if they want to put Oburu Odinga to be the IEBC chairman, I will have no problem with that," said Ruto.

The Deputy President added that he has confidence in the institution and its integrity come the 2022 General Elections.

He also urged his supporters to remain calm despite the planned changes insisting that only the people have the power to decide elections.

Ruto also urged his competitors in the forthcoming elections to accept the results and called for the integrity of the commission.

This comes after President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday, October 15, nominated three former IEBC commissioners to head various missions abroad.

Back in August, EALA MP Oburu Oginga stated that his brother, Raila Odinga, had the backing of ‘the system’ that would propel him to power in 2022

While in Embu, Ruto continued to hit out at the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) by calling on leaders to instead focus on rebuilding the country. 

"Leaders must work together and dedicate their energy and time at ensuring that our country is placed on a sustainable and resilient path that will transform the lives of ordinary Kenyans, rather than embarking on discussions about the creation of political positions," he noted.

Watch Video Below:

{"preview_thumbnail":"/files/styles/video_embed_wysiwyg_preview/public/video_thumbnails/wN8Yl0iqC7k.jpg?itok=nyIhNE3G","video_url":"","settings":{"responsive":1,"width":"854","height":"480","autoplay":0},"settings_summary":["Embedded Video (Responsive)."]}