One of the newly-appointed Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Commissioners (IEBC), Juliana Cherera has been elected the new vice-chairperson of the commission.

In a statement, chairperson Wafula Chebukati said  yesterday Cherera was unanimously elected as vice-chairperson of the commission in a plenary meeting held at the commission boardroom on Tuesday.

“The commission takes this opportunity to congratulate Commissioner Cherera on her appointment.

The commission would like to assure all stakeholders and the public in general of its commitment to delivering a free, fair and credible 2022 General Election that meets the democratic aspirations of the people of Kenya,” stated Chebukati.

Cherera, who hails from Mombasa is the immediate former accounting officer and the County chief officer in Mombasa County government.

The new IEBC vice-chair holds a Bachelor of Education Arts degree specialising in Kiswahili and Geography and Master of Education Leadership and Management from Kenya Methodist University.

She also holds a Diploma in project management from Kenya Institute of Management. She has also done a number of management courses from the Kenya School of Government in Mombasa and Nairobi.

“I did Senior Management Course (SMC) at the KSG Mombasa and Strategic Leadership Development Programme (SLDP) at KSG Nairobi,” she told the IEBC selection panel during the interview recently.

Cherera describes herself as a hands-on person with a wealth of experience in management and government procedures having worked as the accounting officer at Mombasa County executive where she has been in charge of units such as the County attorney’s office and the county media communication team.

She was also a member of the strategy development unit under  Governor Hassan Joho administration where she worked alongside advisers to the governor and the county chief of staff.

Public interests first 

With the above qualities, she believes that alongside other commissioners, the commission now has what it takes to efficiently deliver credible elections.

“We are here to assure the public that we are going to work as a team and we are determined to deliver free, fair and credible elections,” Cherera said during a press conference in Mombasa.

During vetting in Parliament, she told MPs she will be keen to serve the public.

In case things go sour in a heated election, she promised to stick by her philosophy of serving the public interest first, in this case she vowed to stand and steer the IEBC ship out of the stormy waters.

“I want to speak to the vulnerable and the people who have no opportunity and voice to speak at the table.

So being given this opportunity and in case things get sour and pressure mounts, for me I will stand by my philosophy to stand by the people and be there.

Like a captain, you don’t let the ship sink alone, you be there with it,” she said.

Cherera takes over from Consolata Nkatha who deputised Chebukati until April 2018, when she tendered her resignation alongside commissioners Margaret Mwachanya and Paul Kurgat. 

Other new commissioners at IEBC are Francis Wanderi, Irene Masit and Justus Nyang’aya.