The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) has written to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), dismissing claims by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua that the Ol Kalou by election has been planned to favour the ruling party.
In a letter dated Wednesday, July 15, UDA Secretary General Hassan Omar termed Gachagua’s allegations “delusional and alarming”, insisting they were meant to undermine public confidence in the electoral process ahead of Thursday’s mini poll.
The letter was addressed to IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon, barely a day after Gachagua, through his Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP), accused the commission of working with senior government officials to manipulate the by election.
“We have gruelingly read the eight page epistle addressed to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission by one Rigathi Gachagua,” Omar wrote. “The letter addressed to you is not a complaint. It is the latest installment in the long running soap opera starring Rigathi Gachagua.”
UDA faulted Gachagua for naming Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries whom he claimed were campaigning and bribing voters in Ol Kalou, saying the allegations had no supporting evidence.
“A dramatic list of Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries allegedly campaigning and bribing in Ol Kalou Constituency has been recklessly referenced, without a particle of evidence,” the party said.
The ruling party also dismissed claims that the IEBC was planning to delay the issuance of agents’ badges, manipulate KIEMS kits, allow double voting and work with security agencies to influence the outcome of the election.
According to UDA, the allegations were based on anonymous claims and amounted to conspiracy theories aimed at discrediting the electoral commission.
“The suggestion that the IEBC would collude in disenfranchising young voters or rigging KIEMS tallies is not only baseless but an insult to the patriotic election officials who conduct these exercises under intense scrutiny from party agents and observers,” the letter reads.
UDA urged the electoral commission to ignore what it described as political theatrics and instead focus on delivering a credible poll.
“We urge the IEBC to conduct the Ol Kalou Constituency by election professionally, transparently and in accordance with the law, without acquiescing to blackmail, ultimatums, theatrics or the politics of manufactured crisis,” Omar stated.
The exchange comes just hours before voters head to the ballot in the Ol Kalou Constituency by election, setting the stage for yet another political showdown between Gachagua and the ruling party.
