Update. 13:45 p.m: The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has apologised for a tweet they put on December 30, 2020, that appeared to take a swipe at the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).
"Earlier today, the Commission posted a tweet on the launch of the Verification of BBI supporters. However, there was a typographical error in the tweet which was made inadvertently. The error does NOT any in a way reflect the position of the Commission or its staff.
"The Commission sincerely apologizes to all its stakeholders and the General Public," IEBC apologised.
The presumed error occurred as the commission intended to inform Kenyans of a training programme for 400 clerks selected for the verification of BBI signatures.
The commission has since deleted the message and was yet to offer an apology or explanation, as at the time of publishing this story.
Netizens were quick to take screenshots with the phrase "burning bridges" instantly going viral and one of the top trending topics on Twitter.
"Happening now: The launch of the Burning Bridges Initiative supporters verification exercise at the Bomas of Kenya," the tweet by IEBC read.
The tweet elicited mixed reactions from members of the public who sought to question the commission's stance on the process. This welcomed a wide range of views from pro and anti-BBI Kenyans.
It did not help matters that the reference to the BBI as "burning bridges initiative" has been a popular political slogan from skeptics of the process, particularly those allied to Deputy President William Ruto.
"Whoever tweeted " Burning Bridges Initiative supporters " didn't do that due to an error or something. He or she did that deliberately to pass a certain message on behalf of those who do not want Signature verification because they collected in the Mortuaries," one Generali Kiprotich opined.
"IEBC just referred to BBI as Burning Bridges Initiative. The admin low-key knows the truth," Bravin Yuri added.
Pro BBI opinions called for the disbandment of the commission, seconding the report's intent to reform the commission.
"Raila Odinga was right. We will not go to the next General Election with the current IEBC team. It must be disbanded. The tweet about Burning Bridges initiative confirms that Chebukati is a Tanga Tanga mole," Dennis Nyambane argued.
The incident happens at the back of constant criticism of the commission by proponents of the BBI report.
IEBC had initially stated that it lacked the funds to undertake the signature verification exercise. The treasury later approved Ksh 93 million for the exercise despite the commission asking for Ksh 241 million.
ODM Leader Raila Odinga on December 19, asked IEBC officials to quit if they were incapable of conducting the exercise.
