Full Statement By 4 IEBC Commissioners Detailing How Chebukati Cooked Figures In The Final Presidential Results

SonkonewsAug 16, 2022Read original

STATEMENT BY THE INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL AND BOUNDARIES COMMISSION

We the undersigned commissioners of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries

Commission (IEBC), took an oath of office to defend the constitution and the law in

discharge of our duties independently. We have remained faithful to our oath of office

and shall continue to do so.

We collectively and unanimously make the following statement pursuant to the media

briefing we held yesterday evening on August 15 2022 at the Serena Hotel Nairobi where

we promised to issue a comprehensive statement with regard to the results of the August

9, 2022 presidential election declared and announced by Mr. Wafula Chebukati in his

capacity as Chairperson.

In the Serena media briefing, we stated that we would NOT take ownership of the results

of the August 15, 2022 presidential election declared and announced by Mr Chebukati.

In this regard, our reasons to decline to take ownership of the results so declared and

announced by Mr. Chebukati are as follows;

1. THAT the aggregation of the percentages of the results scored by the four

presidential candidates who were on the ballot as declared by Mr. Chebukati

presented to us a mathematical absurdity that defies logic. TAKE NOTICE that Mr.

Chebukati’s aggregation was as follows;

RAILA ODINGA—48.85%

WILLIAM RUTO—50.49%

WAIHIGA MWAURE—0.23%

WAJAKOYA GEORGE—0.44%

---

TOTAL 100.01%

0.1% translates to approximately 142,000 votes, which would make a significant

difference in the final result.

We therefore declined to take ownership of the said results because the

aggregation resulted in a total exceeding the 100 percentage which cast doubt on

the accuracy of the source of the figures tallied, and when we demanded that we

verify our record, Mr. Chebukati declined, overruled us and insisted on declaring

and announcing the said figures.

2. THAT contrary to the Constitution and legislation, the results declared and

announced DID NOT indicate the total number of registered voters, the total

number of votes cast or the number of rejected votes, if any. In this regard, the

results announced by Mr. Chebukati lack a critical ingredient namely the total

number of valid votes cast to support the percentages scored by the four

candidates. Unless demonstrated otherwise, we all know that a percentage is

essentially a fraction of a whole number. Hence, if, for example, the 7.176 million

valid votes cast in favour of the winning candidate as declared and announced by

Chebukati translate to 50.49%, then it was 50.49% of what? Further TAKE NOTICE

that Mr. Chebukati claimed that Raila Odinga attained 25% of votes in 34 counties

while William Ruto attained 25% in 39 counties—the question is; which figures in

the 34 and 39 counties respectively constituted the independent variables to

warrant Mr. Chebukati’s conclusion of 25% in 34 counties and 25% in 39 counties

for Raila and Ruto respectively? In the absence of a credible and verifiable

explanation, we concluded that the process that went into the generation of FORM

34C which Chebukati used to declare results of the presidential election was

opaque and incapable of earning our ownership and confidence.

3. Guided by the authority of the Maina Kiai case (Petition No.106 of 2016 as upheld

by the Court of Appeal in Civil Appeal No.105 of 2017 and affirmed by the Supreme

Court of Kenya) we state categorically that the results of the presidential election

held on August 9, 2022 declared and announced by Mr Wafula Chebukati on

August 15, 2022 belong to Mr Chebukati himself and do not represent a declaration

and announcement by the Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission. The

Commission has to process the results before they are declared and announced

by the chairperson.

For the avoidance of doubt, let me quote the Maina Kiai Case

“we reiterate, as we conclude that there is no doubt from the architecture of the

laws we have considered that the people of Kenya did not intend to vest or

concentrate such sweeping and boundless powers in one individual , the

chairperson of the appellant”. The emphasis is that

The Commission chairperson has conducted the election as though he is the

National Returning Officer, a non existent role, and his role in declaring results

that were not approved at plenary by all 7 commissioners renders the results

unconstitutional to the extent that this are Chebukati’s results as opposed to those

of the IEBC. In keeping with Article 138(2) of the Constitution, there is no national

presidential election in Kenya but rather the presidential election is held in each

constituency.

4. THAT contrary to the Constitution and legislation, by the time Mr. Chebukati

declared and announced final results, results from certain constituencies had not

been announced.

DATED AT NAIROBI this 16 DAY OF AUGUST 2022

JULIANA W. CHERERA VICE CHAIR AND COMMISSIONER

FRANCIS WANDERI COMMISSIONER

JUSTUS ABONYO COMMISSSIONER

IRENE MASIT COMMISSIONER