Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga and Roots party flag bearer George Wajackoyah caused a stand-off during today’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) meeting.
This is after Kenya Kwanza presidential candidate William Ruto arrived for the said meeting with the IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati a two hours late.
Raila and his running mate Martha Karua cited engagements as the reason why they left, while Wajackoyah left without uttering a word.
“We want to seek to leave to attend to other matters, but we have a very robust team behind us. We apologise for leaving before the end, but duty calls,” Karua said.
IEBC was holding a consultative meeting with presidential candidates at the Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club to deliberate on the state of preparedness by the Commission for the August 9 elections.
IEBC Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Marjan Hussein Marjan, took the presidential candidates through the voter identification process and the security measures in place to ensure the system is secure and not prone to any form of abuse or infiltration.
Chebukati assured the presidential candidates that the commission operates an open-door policy, and they are free to visit the commission to consult and share any concerns.
“The Commission is committed to the highest form of transparency, and it is not the policy of the Commission to kick out any agent of any political party. Any such cases should be brought to the Commission’s attention,” IEBC Commissioner Abdi Guliye said.
With only 40 days left until the August polls, it was necessary for IEBC to furnish the presidential candidates with relevant information.