ODM ACCUSES JUBILEE OF TRYING TO RIG UPCOMING ELECTIONS

The Orange Democratic Movement has accused the state of a scheme to rig the May 18 Bonchari parliamentary by-election in favor of Jubilee Party candidate Zebedeo Opore.

The party has written to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission protesting the alleged use of state agencies to campaign for the candidate.

It is the second time the Raila Odinga party is pointing fingers at state operatives for meddling in a by-election.

In the March 4 Matungu by-election, the party claimed state involvement led to the loss by its candidate David Were.

The Orange party has moved to court seeking to overturn Oscar Nabulindo’s win in Matungu.

In Bonchari, ODM has lodged complaints with the IEBC over what it described as misuse of state agencies.

ODM executive director Oduor Ong’wen in a letter dated May 6 claimed that government administrators were openly campaigning for Opore.

ODM is fronting former Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority director general Pavel Oimeke.

Ong’wen cited instances where he claimed the administrators publicly rallied locals to vote for Opore in breach of Public Officers Ethics Act which requires them to be apolitical.

“We wish to register our complaint with the commission following a series of well-calculated, planned and executed systemic activities by a section of the state’s administrative and security agencies, whose overall import is to adversely influence a free, fair and democratic electoral process,” Ong’wen said.

The letter was addressed to IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati.

But in a swift rejoinder, Nyanza regional commisioner Magu Mutindika and regional police commander Karanja Mururi distanced themselves and their juniors from the campaigns.

Speaking to the Star on Sunday, Mutindika told ODM to state if it was already sensing defeat.

Mururi said ODM claims were empty propaganda.

“I have nothing to do with what they are alleging. It is true I attended the said meeting but it was purely for security reasons and had nothing to do with politics or the impending election,” Mutindika said.

He was referring to a meeting at Riana where ODM claimed Opore was allowed to address chiefs and their assistants while other candidates were locked out.

Ong’wen said Opore dressed in Jubilee party colours, something the ODM boss said amounted to campaigning.

Mutindika said he was at the meeting to introduce a new assistant county commissioner who had been posted to a new division created in Kisii county.

“The government gave the area a new division called Riana and an officer posted there. I was there to witness him begin serving the people there officially,” Mutindika said.

ODM is also protesting against plans to relocate the constituency tallying centre from the Suneka Baraza Hall to Igonga Secondary School.

The party says the school is not gazetted to be a tallying centre.

“Why the sudden change midstream of an electoral process without consulting the relevant stakeholders in this by-election?”

“It is not lost to us that some of these incidents occurred recently in the Matungu by-election and the commission ignored to act on similar complaints made to it as provided for in law,” Ong’wen told IEBC.

The party’s national treasurer Timothy Bosire told the Star on Sunday that ODM was shocked that electoral malpractice was still being encouraged despite being among the key issues to be addressed by the handshake between President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila.

“We saw this happen during the by-election in Matungu and this time we are more vigilant and determined to ensure the same does not happen in Bonchari,” Bosire said.

He added, “This is just the beginning. We have our people all over the constituency monitoring every move by our opponents and the public officers. We are collecting more evidence.”

He said the party wants a peaceful process that is free and fair.

“They are busy having strategy meetings with the police and the administrators who should be neutral. They met in Kisii town and are now meeting in Borabu in the home of a senior government official to plan the hand over victory to the Jubilee candidate,” Bosire said.

By The Star Kenya