IEBC awarded for conducting 'free and fair' 2022 elections

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has received international recognition for its transparency in the August 2022 General Election. 

The African Ombudsman and Mediators’ Association (AOMA) on Wednesday awarded the commission for handling the polls with professionalism saying that the Wafula Chebukati-led body was non-bipartisan during the whole exercise.

AOMA Secretary General Florence Kajuju who handed the Election Monitoring Report to the IEBC CEO Hussein Marjan commended the commission for conducting the polls in line with the relevant electoral laws. 

“The Mission observed that IEBC officials conducted their mandate in a transparent, independent and impartial manner. Accredited Agents and Observers were granted access to the polling stations and tallying centres,” the association stated.

The 2022 General Election report was prepared by the Commission of Administrative Justice-Kenya and the Africa Ombudsman and Mediators’ Association (AOMA).

AOMA noted that the elections saw all the processes done in a transparent manner in the presence of political party agents, media and observers.

Despite identifying some issues of conflict, the association also indicated there was a general acceptance of results by different contestants who vied for different positions and their supporters.

“The mission also observed that some candidates conceded defeat and sent congratulatory messages to their competitors after the declaration of the results. Some dissatisfied aspirants chose to use the constitutional post elections disputes mechanisms and appealed to their supporters to maintain peace,” the AOMA observer mission said.

This comes as the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition leader Raila Odinga continues to fault the IEBC accusing the commission of sabotaging the will of the people in the elections which saw his opponent William Ruto declared the fifth president of Kenya.