The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has called for a crisis meeting on Thursday with the National Super Alliance (Nasa) leaders led by Raila Odinga over the Sh2.5 billion ballot papers printing tender that has been awarded to Dubai-based Al Ghurair Printing & Publishing company.
On Wednesday, NASA demanded for the cancellation of the printing tender over what they claimed as closeness by the Dubai company’s top hierarchy to the Jubilee Party which would influence the outcome of the August elections in favour of President Uhuru Kenyatta.
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Nasa also called for the resignation of IEBC CEO Ezra Chiloba and elections operations director Immaculate Kasait, whom they accused of acting in cahoots with State House in procurement of the tender to Al Ghurair company.
In a tough worded statement on Wednesday, NASA principals Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetang’ula said the tender must be cancelled and the process restarted to ensure free and fair elections.Mudavadi also claimed Chiloba was in a State House meeting which was attended by Al Ghurair chief executive officer Aziz Al Ghurair.
The leaders also said Mr Ghurair is a close friend of the Kenyatta family and a frequent guest at the home of the president’s younger brother, Muhoho Kenyatta.
The allegations that has raised political temperatures in the country prompted IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati to invited the five NASA principals through a letter to alliance CEO Norman Magaya to a 10am meeting at the commission’s Nairobi’s offices.
Chebukati further announced that IEBC would send a ‘monitoring delegation’ to Dubai to “witness, confirm and verify” in writing “that the desired quantity of ballot papers has been printed, stitched and packaged into pallets.”
The delegation, Chebukati said, would include representatives of all eight presidential candidates, a representative from the civil society, three representatives from the media, a representative from the Inter-religious Council and a representative from the Kenya Bureau of Standards.