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Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni has warned of the impending danger of the continued delay of reconstituting the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

In a clip shared by the former ruling party on Saturday, December 14, 2024, Kioni noted that the latest developments regarding attempts to reconstitute the electoral body could easily lead to a constitutional crisis.

Kioni argued that the latest decision by the court to declare the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Amendment Bill 2023 unconstitutional, is the latest hurdle in plans to put in place an electoral body ahead of the 2027 polls.

In the ruling by Justice Lawrence Mugambi on Friday, December 13, 2024, he averred the lack of public participation as the grounds to annul the law.

President William Ruto signed the IEBC (Amendment) Bill 2022 into law in January 2023, which required the Selection Panel to have representatives of the Parliamentary Service Commission, the Public Service Commission (PSC), the Political Parties Liaison Committee (PPLC), the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), and the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya.

Appeals to church

While waning that the delayed IEBC reconstitution would slide the country into a constitutional crisis, Jeremiah Kioni challenged the church to take a front seat in advocating for its establishment.

He argued that their input would help the country evade the pending danger due to the lack of IEBC. Kioni went on to claim that they plan to organise protests led by the church over the IEBC matter.

“This IEBC thing we are joking around with can land us in very serious trouble. Next year we need to set a date and organise protests led by the church.

“We are walking into a very terrible trap If IEBC will not be reconstituted immediately. Today the court has said that the intended amendment that was taken to Parliament and signed into law is not lawful,” Kioni stated.

“So every single day, we are walking into a constitutional crisis. I ask the church to help voice this issue of IEBC even more than the political leaders,” he added.

''We are heading into a constitutional crisis!'' – SG @HonKioni's take on IEBC reconstitution as he urges the Church to speak about the looming crisis. pic.twitter.com/0CPL3PHTJw

— JUBILEE PARTY® (@JubileePartyK) December 14, 2024

The push for IEBC reconstitution gained momentum after Supreme Court judge Isaac Lenaola challenged Kenyans to start a hashtag #AppointIEBCNow.

He wondered why the political class was more focused on other issues other than IEBC which he noted was crucial to the country.

“I do not understand why, for example, we are busy passing legislation very quickly on other subjects that are politically important, but we do not look at what is extremely important for this country – the electoral commission.

How can a country like ours stand on its feet if it does not have an electoral commission?” he posed.