The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chairman Wafula Chebukati and two of his colleagues, Boya Mulu and Abdi Guliye were on Wednesday, January 11, treated to a farewell party.
The three who are scheduled to exit the commission on January 17, 2023, after six years of service, noted that they are going out with their heads held up high.
Chebukati, Molu and Guliye all expressed their gratitude to the staff and IEBC for the time that they served at the commission.
“Long journey of six years at IEBC is about to end. Looking forward to a happy exit in the next few days. Thanks to our staff for this wonderful farewell,” Commissioner Molu noted.
Chebukati will be leaving office after six tumultuous years of both massive successes and failures.
“We have faced a lot of challenges as a commission, but we have always remained committed to upholding the integrity of the electoral process and ensuring that every vote counts," Commissioner Guliye noted.
In his part, Guliye took time to dispel accusations that the commission was involved in electoral rigging during the August 2022 General Election.
“It demoralises the commission when people talk of stolen elections. Those times have ended,” Guliye explained.
The farewell event was punctuated with a cake-cutting ceremony which culminated in the sharing of drinks and eateries.
Chebukati, Molu and Guliye were appointed by former President Uhuru Kenyatta in January 2017 alongside four others who resigned after the 2017 General Elections.
The three were in 2021 joined by commissioners Juliana Cherera, Francis Wanderi, Irene Masit and Justus Nyang'aya.
As Chebukati, Molu and Guliye's term came to an end, President William Ruto in October 2022 declared vacancies at IEBC, hence, triggering another round of recruitment process.
“The tenure of the chairperson and two members of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission is set to lapse on January 17, 2023, having been appointed on January 18, 2017, vide Gazette Notices 399 and 400 of 2017,” read Ruto's notice.
By January 17, 2023, IEBC will only be having one commission, Irene Masit, who declined to resign like her colleagues, Juliana Cherera, Francis Wanderi, and Justus Nyang'aya.
