Oswago, Nyachae, Amadi in shortlist for IEBC chair post
By Rawlings Otieno, March 7, 2025The race to succeed the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) chairperson the late Wafula Chebukati has kicked off with the publication of 37 applicants shortlisted for interviews.
Some of the notable names include former Constitution Implementation Commission (CIC) chairperson Charles Nyachae, the immediate former Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Anne Amadi and former IEBC Chief Executive officer James Oswago.
Others include IEBC Director Legal Services Chrispine Owiye, former Nairobi County Assembly clerk Jacob Ngwele, Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority Independent Board Member Francis Kissinger, Kenya Power Board Chairperson Joy Brenda Masinde-Mdivo, and Head of Investigations Department at Directline Assurance Company Limited Wilson Wambugu Maina.
Others who made it to the shortlist include Choge Rollince, Cedrick Ogoro, Edward Ngenywa, Kibet Victor, Lilian Wanjiku, Isaac Mutua, Patrick Otuliia, Jackson Angortum, Kenneth Kemboi, Saul Wasilwa, Fred Khaemba, Kadhua Jimmy, Vincent Oluoch and Wycliff Kiprotich.
Samson Ogada, Samuel Kiragu, Yvonne Olaka, Samuel Ochillo, Peter Nyongesa, Nelly Ashubwe, Erastus Ethekon, Abdulqadir Ramadhan, Calistus Waswa, Duncan Ojwang’, Josiah Onyancha, Thomas Nyakambi, Walubengo Waningilo and William Oketch also made it to the shortlist.
EACJ Judge
Nyachae had resigned as a Judge of the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) in 2023 and was later appointed by President William Ruto as the Chairman of the Board of Kenya School of Government.
Amadi left the Judiciary in January 2024 after a 10-year stint, while Oswago joined the electoral agency in 2009 when it was still known as the Interim Independent Election Commission (IIEC) and resigned in 2013. Last year in October, the High Court upheld the convictions of Oswago and his deputy, Wilson Shollei in the infamous Chickengate scandal.
The Anti-Corruption Court’s Chief Magistrate, Felix Kombo, sitting in Nairobi in December 2022, convicted the two to four years in prison each or a fine of Sh7.5 million each in the alternative for corruption related to the procurement of Sh1.3 billion voter identification devices for the 2013 General Election.
Procurement scam
The two were charged alongside two others with four counts of willful failure to comply with procurement regulations and abuse of office law.
Oswago and Shollei were, convicted on two counts, to which they filed the appeal while the other two accused persons were acquitted for lack of evidence.
Kissinger on the other hand has specialized in Electoral Monitoring, Observation, Management and Training in 6 African countries (Zambia, Ethiopia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Liberia and Uganda.
According to section 6 of the IEBC Act, the chairperson of the Commission shall be a person who is qualified to hold the office of judge of the Supreme Court under the Constitution.
This means that the 37 candidates shortlisted for the position of chairperson a law degree, have at least 15 years of experience as a superior court judge or distinguished legal practitioner, demonstrate high moral character and integrity, and meet the requirements of Chapter Six of the Constitution.
Qualifications
While a person is qualified for appointment as a member of the Commission if such person holds a degree from a recognized university, has proven relevant experience in electoral matters, management finance, governance, public administration, law and meets the requirements of Chapter Six of the Constitution. The panel for the recruitment of IEBC officials has shortlisted 1,356 candidates for the position of chairperson and commission members.
Out of 1,333 applicants for the position of member of the IEBC, 237 are female, 1,078 are male, and 18 applicants did not attach their identification number.
The Dr Nelson Makanda led-nine member selection team on Wednesday revealed that Homa Bay County took the lead in the number of applications, followed by Kisii, Bungoma and Trans Nzoia counties for the position of the chairperson of the electoral body.
The Selection panel received applications from applicants from 33 counties with Homa Bay leading with 63 applicants, followed by Kisii (62), Kakamega (54), Nakuru (29), Nandi (25), Kiambu (20), Mombasa (10), Nairobi (8) while Siaya only had two applicants.
The selection panel, which has a 90-day time limit, seeks to fill the position of the chairperson and six commissioners by May.
In a past interview, the Nelson Makanda led selection team stated that it hopes to forward the names of successful individuals to the president on April 25 for appointment.
“Thereafter, the next steps will follow because as appertains to the law, the names will be forwarded to parliament for vetting and later take over the office,” said the panel’s vice chairperson Lindah Kiome.