An Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) member candidate stunned the selection panel when he failed to name Kenya’s nationalists popularly known as the Kapenguria Six. 

James Leiro Letangule, a senior manager at the newly introduced Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF), only managed to name founding President Jomo Kenyatta and wrongfully mentioned freedom fighter Dedan Kimathi as among the group. 

A member of the IEBC Selection Panel Prof. Adams Oloo asked Letangule:  “Name any three Kenyan nationalists who were arrested in 1952 and are usually known as the Kapenguria six?” 

In responding to the question that came last at the grilling session, a hesitant Letangule started jotting down notes after mentioning former Kenyatta and Kimathi. 

As the candidate struggled to name the third name, Oloo gave him a countdown of 10 seconds but still, Letangule could not recall any other name, prompting the chairman to end the interview session with him at that point. 

Kenyan nationals 

The Kapenguria Six-Bildad Kagia, Kung’u Karumba, Jomo Kenyatta, Fred Kubai, Paul Ngei, and Achieng’ Oneko-were six leading Kenyan nationalists who were arrested in 1952, tried at Kapenguria in 1952–53, and imprisoned thereafter in northern Kenya. 

Kenyatta went on to the presidency of Kenya; Kaggia and Ngei served as ministers; Oneko was detained by Kenyatta between 1969 and 1974, before later serving as MP for Rarieda in Kenya’s 7th Parliament; Kung’u Karumba disappeared in 1975, while in Uganda on business trip; Fred Kubai twice served as MP for Nakuru East – from 1963 to 1974, and from 1983 to 1988 – before his death in June 1996.  

Earlier, Letangule told the panel the government should make voter registration mandatory just like it did with SHIF. 

Comparing SHIF and IEBC, he clarified that many Kenyans will be empowered to exercise their democratic right to vote similar to how they could access healthcare as long as they are registered in the system. 

“National Health Insurance Fund was more constrained on membership, where one had to be a member to get cost of health services covered but under SHA the law has allowed all Kenyans to join the programme and their healthcare is covered,” Letangule said. 

While responding to a question on the trust deficit that Kenyans have developed towards SHIF, the candidate told the Selection Panel that the implementing agency Social Health Authority (SHA) is in continuous engagement with healthcare providers and any arising problem is addressed as soon as it is reported. 

“From a management level, I can confirm that the programmes are up and running. We have an escalation matrix whenever there is a challenge, and we also have levels of engagement from the healthcare providers themselves. We have many alternative ways of ensuring continuity of service when issues are reported. Internally we have put in place programmes in case of any eventuality, including system glitches and we engage directly to the providers,” Letangule said. 

He said IEBC must embark on massive mobilization when it starts voter registration adding that it was through such an initiative that SHIF increased its membership to about 20 million from the seven million it inherited from the defunct NHIF. 

“There are programmes that need to be continually demystified to the public through robust communication in any institution like IEBC that offers essential services to the public. Mistrust in IEBC is as result of issues that though identified, are not addressed. Like in the last general elections, two counties were not voting on the material day yet the public was not adequately informed over that issue,” he added. 

Letang’ule proposed that IEBC should be linked to the Registrar of Persons system so that it can mop up dead voters who still exist in the register 

Additionally, the candidate called for the digitization of the IEBC process to curb double registration, incidences of voters’ transfer without their knowledge and double voting. 

James Nyamongo who was also interviewed by the IEBC Selection Panel said a commission charter must be developed if governance mishaps in the electoral body are to be managed. 

According to Nyamongo, the vision and mission statement of the agency are inadequate in addressing the governance challenges it is facing.