Odinga wants officials axed

– Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga yesterday sought the sacking of several poll commission officials and set other conditions for taking part in a presidential vote re-run in October, after the landmark scrapping of last month’s poll won by President Uhuru Kenyatta, pictured.

On Friday, Supreme Court Chief Justice David Maraga created history in Africa by declaring Kenyatta’s victory in the August 8 election “invalid, null and void”, citing widespread irregularities in the electronic transmission of vote results.

It was the first time a presidential election result was overturned on the continent and followed three failed bids by the 72-year-old Odinga, pictured, for the presidency – in 1997, 2007 and 2013.

“There will be no election on October 17 until terms and conditions which we have spelt out in this statement are met,” a combative Odinga told reporters.

He said the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) had set the new date after only consulting Kenyatta’s Jubilee grouping and not his National Super Alliance.

“We find this a contemptuous action,” he said. “It is Jubilee that decided on the date and not the IEBC.

“A number of the election officials should be sent home and some of them should be investigated and prosecuted for the kind of heinous crimes they committed in the last elections. Their names are known. These officials should not conduct elections.”

Odinga said all eight presidential candidates who took part in the earlier poll should be allowed to contest this time as well.

“This is a not repeat of a presidential election where number 1 and number 2 goes for a run-off,” he said.

“Therefore, any Kenyan eligible to run can run.”

Odinga said the IEBC had not given the opposition access to its servers despite a Supreme Court injunction and called for a revamp of the system. – AFP