NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 7 – Deputy President William Ruto has told off Azimio La Umoja-One Kenya presidential candidate Raila Odinga for giving ultimatums to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
Speaking during a tour of Loiyangalani in Marsabit, Ruto said the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is an independent body and should be allowed to discharge its duties in peace devoid of blackmail.
He dared Odinga who is his closest competitor to meet him at the polls as he expressed confidence that he will prevail.
“Any candidate cannot blackmail or make any ultimatums to the IEBC. If we go that route, we will not have any election. You are the same people who said they wanted an electronic register in 2017 you even went to court. Now you want to tell us you want the manual one. Please make up your mind,” Ruto said.
The Kenya Kwanza flagbearer further pointed out that his camp is ready for the polls and called on IEBC to continue preparing for the election without distractions
“We want to ask the IEBC to carry out their mandate in accordance with the Constitution and should not accept any ultimatum from anybody. Whether we have a manual register or electronic one, the people of Kenya, IEBC is the institution that has the mandate and the expertise to know how we are going to have a free and fair election,” Ruto said.
His remarks come a day after Odinga issued an ultimatum to the IEBC saying there will be no elections unless the manual register is used.
Odinga said failure to use a manual register along with the electronic register will be a recipe for vote fraud, while accusing his main competitor Deputy President William Ruto of hatching a plot to rig elections.
“I am telling the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission that a manual register is a must in each and every polling station,” Odinga said Wednesday during campaigns in Githunguri, Kiambu County.
And he declared “it is not negotiable, a manual register is a must along with the electronic register, otherwise No manual register, no elections.”
On Thursday while on tour of Kirinyaga county, Odinga however made an about turn and said he will not boycott the August 9 election but will be alert to any irregularities during the exercise.
Odinga said the Azimio coalition is bound to win and exuded confidence that they will win by over 65 percent.
“I know we are going to win. Already, we are at 65 percent, but I want it to go upto over 70 percent. They wrote that I said we will boycott election and I am asking how can we boycott an election that we are sure we are going to win? Odinga posed.
He warned that there should be no rigging of votes saying they will not accept a flawed process
“I was just sending a warning message that they should not even think of rigging because we will not accept. We are winners and I know Azimio has dominated almost all the regions. Our competitors will not get votes. We will defeat them,” he said.
IEBC Chairperson Wafula Chebukati on the other hand allayed fears by the Azimio la Umoja – One Kenya that the elections will be rigged.
During a stakeholders meeting with Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) on Thursday, the IEBC Chairman emphasized that there will be no extra ballot papers printed to occasion rigging in the highly contested poll.
