NAIROBI, Kenya Jul 15 \u2013 Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Commissioner Moses Atulala has warned that continued political attacks on the electoral body risk undermining public confidence in the commission and could trigger widespread rejection of the 2027 General Election results.<\/p>\n
Speaking during an interview on NTV on Wednesday morning, Atulala cautioned that the persistent discrediting of the electoral referee by political actors is creating conditions that could lead to a legitimacy crisis regardless of who wins or loses the next election.<\/p>\n
He stressed that safeguarding the credibility of the IEBC is in the national interest and not merely about protecting the institution\u2019s image.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is not in the interest or benefit of the IEBC that the commission looks good. It is in the interest of all Kenyans,\u201d Atulala said.<\/p>\n
He warned that if attacks against the commission continue unchecked, the country risks entering the 2027 elections with a deeply divided electorate unwilling to accept the final outcome.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the IEBC continues to be bashed every day, then by the time it presides over the 2027 elections, the ground will already have been prepared for rejection of the results either way,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
According to the commissioner, sustained efforts to erode public trust in the electoral body could result in both winners and losers facing legitimacy challenges, creating fertile ground for political instability and civil unrest.<\/p>\n
Atulala argued that undermining the credibility of the electoral referee ultimately threatens Kenya\u2019s democratic future.<\/p>\n
Responding to concerns over whether the commission has done enough to curb inflammatory political rhetoric ahead of the elections, Atulala defended the IEBC\u2019s approach, saying the commission has been actively engaging other state institutions to maintain order and accountability.<\/p>\n
He disclosed that the electoral agency is working closely with the National Police Service and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) to address electoral offences and penalise those responsible for incitement and political violence.<\/p>\n
The commissioner also referenced earlier remarks by IEBC Chairperson regarding incidents of violence and intimidation witnessed during ongoing campaigns, particularly in the Ol Kalou by-election.<\/p>\n
Quoting the chairperson, Atulala said:<\/p>\n
\u201cIf politicians don\u2019t stop this goon madness, then we are heading in the wrong direction. In Ol Kalou everything appears calm during the day, but at night madness descends.\u201d<\/p>\n
He warned that failure to secure the electoral environment now could have serious consequences for the country in 2027.<\/p>\n
Atulala further urged Kenyans to use the ballot as a tool to reject leaders who promote tribalism, regionalism and divisive politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Kenyans decide to punish politicians who deliberately inflame the country, promote tribalism or seek to divide communities by denying them votes, they will quickly learn that such politics no longer pays,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
As residents of Ol Kalou prepare to head to the polls, the by-election is increasingly being viewed as an important indicator of the country\u2019s political climate ahead of the 2027 General Election.<\/p>\n
Atulala maintained that ordinary citizens hold the key to safeguarding peace and democracy by refusing to reward divisive politics and holding leaders accountable through the ballot.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NAIROBI, Kenya Jul 15 \u2013 Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Commissioner Moses Atulala has warned that continued political attacks on the electoral body risk undermining public confidence in the commission and could trigger widespread rejection of the 2027 General Election results. Speaking during an interview on NTV on Wednesday morning, Atulala cautioned that the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-146896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146896\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}