Senators on Thursday, January 19, rejected proposals by Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition to remove Public Service Commission from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Selection Committee.
However, Senators approved the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) (Amendment) Bill as passed by the National Assembly after more than five hours of debate.
The newly proposed amendments were moved by Nominated Senator Catherine Mumma who called on his colleagues to remove Public Service Commission (PSC) from list of organisations that will be represented in the Selection Committee.
Mumma also wanted the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and the Political Parties Liaison Committee (PPLC) to be removed from the Selection Committee.
“I support the proposals, politics as we all know is about perception. We must start this particular journey towards an IEBC that will be responsible for 2027 with the full confidence of all political players,” noted Nairobi senator Edwin Sifuna.
In response, a total of 26 senators voted against the proposed changes while only nine senators were for the changes.
The senators, therefore, reverted back to the original Bill passed by the National Assembly.
The debate on the Amendment Bill led to a serious clash as Azimio Senators ganged up to force changes to the IEBC Law.
In the debate that took place during a special sitting, President William Ruto’s allied senators backed down and withdrawn recommendations by the Justice and Legal Affairs and Human Rights committee to only have one nominee from Parliament.
While disagreeing on the composition of IEBC Selection Committee, Mumma proposed that the recruiting panel shall consist of one man and one woman nominated by the Parliamentary Service Commission.
She also proposed that one man and one woman nominated by the majority and minority political parties represented in the PPLC at the national level, one person nominated by the LSK, one man and one woman nominated by the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya.
“Not only does it achieve that perception of fairness in terms of the political balance of the people or organisations that are being represented in that particular party but also in terms of gender because for the first time, it’s clear,” Sifuna argued.
However, Kenya Kwanza Senators dismissed Mumma's amendments and maintained the original Bill from the National Assembly.
“I oppose the amendments by senator Mumma. The PSC is the principal employer of the government, you simply can not do without the principal employer of the government who assesses the competencies of the people who are going to be selected,” explained nominated senator Essy Okenyuri.
