Friday, December 18, 2020 - Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader, Raila Odinga, has urged Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairman, Wafula Chebukati, to resign for trying to delay the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) signature verification exercise. When he received BBI signatures last week, Chebukati said he wants a budget of Sh 244 million for…
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THE STANDARD By
Eric Abuga |
December 18th 2020 at 16:15:03 GMT +0300
ODM leader Raila Odinga (
pictured) has accused the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission of plans to sabotage the BBI process.
Raila said IEBC commissioners and staff continue to earn huge salaries despite not having work to do after every general election.
He was speaking in Nyaribari Chache Kisii during the burial of Eng Barnabas Ariga, former Chief Engineer in the Ministry of Roads and Public Works.
In late October, IEBC acting CEO Hussein Marjan said a plebiscite would cost the country Sh14 billion, but the demands have since been dismissed by the BBI bill proponents.
THE STANDARD
The National Treasury has disbursed Sh93 million for signature verification to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), setting the stage for a referendum next year.
“They initially requested Sh241 million. But through a meeting this was rationalised,” Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani said yesterday, insisting that the money is sufficient for the exercise.
The money would be used to hire and train clerks who will verify the signatures. This process would take 85 days to complete.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga consults with Nyaribari Masaba MP Ezekiel Machogu. [Sammy Omingo, Standard]
More money
Yatani revealed this on a day when ODM leader Raila Odinga asked IEBC commissioners to resign to pave way for a new team.