The Elections Observation Group (ELOG) has urged the IEBC Selection Panel to make public the full recruitment report it submitted to President William Ruto, following the conclusion of the interviews for the Chairperson and members of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
In a strongly-worded statement released just hours after President Ruto unveiled the nominees on Thursday, ELOG faulted the panel for failing to uphold transparency by not publishing the final report.
“The report was only submitted to the President and was not made public. Accordingly, therefore, we demand the immediate release of the full recruitment report,” the organization said.
President Ruto nominated Erastus Edung Ethekon as the next IEBC Chairperson and named six others to serve as commissioners.
The nominees are Ann Njeri Nderitu (Nyandarua), Moses Alutalala Mukhwana (Kakamega), Mary Karen Sorobit (Uasin Gishu), Hassan Noor Hassan (Mandera), Francis Odhiambo Aduol (Kisumu), and Fahima Arafat Abdallah (Lamu).
The Selection Panel, which was constituted through Gazette Notice No. 715 on January 27, 2025, had interviewed 11 candidates for the Chairperson role and 107 for commissioner slots. It submitted its final report to the President on May 6, recommending two names for Chairperson and nine for commissioner positions.
While commending the panel for conducting what it termed as a “largely open and credible process,” ELOG raised concerns over the unexplained addition of six names to the shortlist during the process — a move it says was never adequately explained to the public.
“The failure to release the recruitment report will only deepen suspicions and promote unnecessary speculations,” ELOG warned. “Transparency and accountability through the observance of open data principles are fundamental for good governance.”
The final list of nominees has since been forwarded to the National Assembly for vetting and approval, in line with constitutional and legal requirements.
Among those who missed out on the final list were prominent figures such as former East African Court of Justice judge Charles Nyachae and former Judiciary Registrar Ann Amadi.
