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The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) will rule on Monday if Jubilee Party Kibra by-election aspirant McDonald Mariga name will be on the ballot paper on November 7.

During a Disputes  Resolution Committee hearing chaired by IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati, Mariga’s lawyers, Elisha Ongoya and Sam Chelanga, insisted that their client is a duly registered as a voter. 

“He was registered in Starehe constituency, which has been confirmed by the IEBC registration official. The voter register of Starehe was and has not been closed hence Mariga is dully registered,” said Ongoya.

Beatrice Muli, the Kibra by-election Returning Officer who invalidated Mariga’s eligibility to vie for the seat on Tuesday, said she could not find the candidate’s name in the IEBC register and nomination checklist.

Ongoya urged IEBC to give the Kibra people the full ‘menu’ to exercise their democratic right to elect their preferred leader.

“You should give Kibra people the full menu, which has all candidates to make their choices,” he said.

Mariga petitioned the tribunal after his Kibra candidature was invalidated on grounds that he was not a registered voter.

Yesterday, Muli said Mariga and his Jubilee Party skipped a pre-nomination meeting where all nominated candidates present themselves at the constituency IEBC office for registration for the mini-poll.

“After a party nominates a candidate, the next step is for the candidate with a party official to present themselves to the electoral office for registration of the candidate. Neither the Jubilee Party nor its candidate were present for the exercise,” Muli told the tribunal.

“I even tried calling the party but my calls went answered. I am guided by the law and the Constitution and that is what I followed when Mariga presented himself on September 10, 2019.”

She further confirmed that the ICT voters’ registration list was up to date, but could not verify whether the hardcopy version was updated.

Ishmail Yasim, the Assistant Registration Officer for Starehe constituency, confirmed to have personally registered the footballer as a voter in Starehe on August 26 and issued him with an acknowledgement slip at 12.05pm.

This was more than a week after Speaker of the National Assembly, Justin Muturi, officially declared the Kibra constituency parliamentary seat vacant following the death of area MP Ken Okoth.

Mariga was present during the hearing accompanied by his lawyers and a number of Jubilee officials.