Mandera leaders threaten to move to court over delayed Banisa by-election.
By Musa Bashir
Following the the demise of Banisa member of Parliament Kullow maalim this year, Mandera leaders Led by United democratic Movement (UDM) party leader senator Ali roba and Mandera North legislator Major Bashir Abdullahi shown their dissatisfaction as while the Banisa Constituency by-election is being delayed for seven months now. Major Bashir said he will bring a proposal to ammendment the electrol body act to allow Independent Electrol and Bounders commission(IEBC) CEO Hussein Marjan to gazette returning officer to conduct by-election.
The Lawmaker has also lamented over the process saying that the constituency has been without any representation at the National Assembly for the seven months now because of the delayed recruitment of IEBC commissioners.
“I will bring a bill before Parliament next week that will mandate to IEBC CEO to gazette returning officer to conduct by-elections in Banisa and i have hope will go through..”Major Bashir says.
This process was retarded by the retirement of former chairman Wafula Chebukati and ex-commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Mulu on January after serving their six-year non-renewal term while other commissioners were pushed out after last year’s Presidential elections fall-out.
The Mandera Senator and UDM party leader Ali Ibrahim Roba also to join the quest vowed in a bid to seek redress the amendment a section of Electrol act in order to avert the continuation of a constitutional crisis in the future.
He further stated that the gap in the constitution has made people of Banisa Constituency not being represented at the national level and unable to get benefits of government allocations such as Constituency Development Funds.
“Its very sad that we have lacuna in the constitution that has created created a situation where it hasn’t foreseen that there will be a time that all the commissioners will be out of office and there is any provision of law that commission secretariat will be able to do by-election as required.” Senator Roba said.
The effort to replace the commissioners was halted by the to political deadlock between President William Ruto’s led Kenya Kwanza and Azimio leader Raila Odinga.
Last week while responding to a case filed seeking electoral body directed to conduct the by-elections for Banissa Member of Parliament within 30 days, the IEBC CEO Hussein Marjan has said the commission will not be able to conduct elections for Banissa MP due to the delayed recruitment of new IEBC commissioners.
“In the absence of the commissioners, no gazette notices may be executed for publication to facilitate the conduct of any by-election as the same would lack the sanction of the commission thereby violating the constitution,” Marjan says.
Article 101 of the Constitution, provides that a by-election ought to have been held within ninety (90) days of the occurrence of the vacancy in the said office.
The Banisa member of Parliament seat was declared vacant by the National Assembly speaker Moses Wetangula following the death of MP Kullow Maalim Hassan, who succumbed to injuries sustained after he was knocked down by a motorcyclist in Nairobi on March, 29, 2023.
