It’s all systems go for selection of Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) commissioners after President William Ruto finally appointed a selection panel mandated to oversee the commissioners’ selection process.

The special Gazette Notice published yesterday, ended a nearly three-year appointment delay that has been at the centre of political turmoil.

For the past two years, Kenya has been grappling with a dysfunctional IEBC due to lack of commissioners.

The commission has for the duration been unable to effectively deliver some of its vital functions such as boundary delimitation, voter registration, and by-elections.

More alarmingly, some constituencies and wards have been denied their fundamental right of representation in the National and County Assemblies.

President Ruto yesterday appointed communication expert Oloo Adams, Kiome Lindah Gakii, James Evans Misati and Nicodemus Kipchirchir Bore to be members of the panel.

Others will be Ambassador Koki Muli Grignon (left), Carolene Kituku, Tanui Andrew Kipkoech, Nelson Makanda and Fatuma Saman.

Ruto at the same time revoked an earlier notice of selection panel appointments that had been gazetted in 2023 giving the newly-elected members power to nominate people for appointment as the chairperson and members of the IEBC.

The move was welcomed by leaders among them Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetang’ula who immediately communicated about the development to Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) leadership which is obligated to provide technical support to the panel.

Shortlist

Members of the new panel have their work cut out having been accorded only seven days to advertise and invite applications from qualified persons and publish the names of all applicants and their qualifications in various platforms among them in a Gazette notice, two newspapers with national circulation and on the PSC website.

The panel is further mandated to consider the applicants, shortlist and interview them as per the Independent Electoral and Boundaries (IEBC) Act. The IEBC Act spells out the nominating parties of the selection panel as PSC, Law Society of Kenya (LSK), and the Inter-religious Council of Kenya.

Speaking after swearing in seven out of the nine members, at Supreme Court Buildings yesterday, Chief Justice Martha Koome called on the panel to prioritise public interest and resist undue influence.