No degree requirement for elective positions, IEBC says

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has clarified that there is no degree requirement for any elective post.

IEBC Commissioner Ann Nderitu said that this is because people went to court before the 2022 general election to challenge the requirement of a degree for candidates running for President, Member of the National Assembly, and Governor.

However, the determination of this case was made after the elections, with the court returning the verdict that section 22(b)(1) of the Elections Act is unconstitutional.

Dr Nderitu said the determination was pegged on two issues, the first being that it violates Article 27 of the Constitution on equality and freedom from discrimination.

 “The court looked at whether, when you ask someone for a degree, how many have it in Kenya, and the court made its analysis and found that even the 2019 Kenya National Bureau of Statistics census showed that only 3.5 per cent of Kenyans have degrees. It means that the rest of Kenyans cannot participate in the election for President, Governor, and MP, thus discriminatory,” she explained, in a televised interview.

The second reason, she said, was pegged on issues surrounding public participation, with the court finding that this was not done when the law was being passed; thus, it did not meet the threshold.

 “As we stand today, then, there is no requirement for a degree for anybody; that is the situation we are in. Unless maybe somebody goes to court or we start the process of public participation and now allow the degree process to come through a proper public participation and Kenyans can return the verdict, we go by that. We do not have the requirement for a degree anywhere,” she explained.

She explained that the Constitution expected there would be registration by Parliament, interpreting Article 99, which required there should be educational qualifications, and then put it into force on what is required for every seat.

But that is what the judge and the court said is unconstitutional and discriminatory, and currently, they will be required to know which qualification they will be asking for but a degree is not part of the requirement.

At the same time, Nderitu has explained the gender rule principle, saying in the last general election, the Commission was guided by the court that the list of candidates submitted by a political party  must meet two thirds of either gender.

 “We expect to implement this, and we have forwarded an amendment to Parliament to make it clear that, by the ruling given to us, we have the right to demand that political parties to present a list of candidates that addresses the issue of the two-thirds gender rule. I appeal to political parties to support us in this,” she urged.

On the budget, Nderitu said that they submitted to the National Treasury, as required by law, a budget of about Sh74 billion.

 “Majorly, we look at some of the cost drivers that have pushed us that high. We intend to procure new technology because we had a review. Institutions mandated to review established some gaps; it is a cost driver of about Sh10 billion and ballot papers around Sh6.8 billion,” she said.

She said there is also another round of voter registration, while the register will also be audited, which drives the general cost.

“The single most significant cost increase is the number of registered voters. In 2022, we had 22.1 million, and we intend, by the close of all voter registrations six months to the next general election when the register will be closed, we expect that we will have registered 28.5 million,” she said.

With an additional number of registered voters, she said that it translates to more polling stations, which are expected to rise from the current estimated 46,000 to 55,000, given that the cap is usually 700 according to the law.

 “We expect to add another 10,000 polling stations... it comes with officials increasing, new KIEMS kits, payment of poll officials, and training, among others. That is a cost driver; it drives the cost of training, geo-fencing of the polling station. We have an additional cost that was not there in the last general election,” Nderitu explained.

She said that there is also a need to advance technology to register candidates and a proper election centre, where they are able to see everything at a glance and subsequently help in early warning.

At the same time, she insisted on the secrecy of the vote, saying voters cannot take a photo of the ballot paper when voting and even when counting, because the elections, according to the Constitution, are by secret ballot.

However, she said that when it comes to the counting of votes, they allow the agents and observers to take a photo of the form once the results have been announced and the forms have been filled.

 “By the time we are telling them to take the photo, we have already transmitted it to the public portal, and it is not only people at the polling station who will see the result form, but we shall even pin the form at the door of the polling station,” she said.

Meanwhile, Nderitu has said that several people have been summoned over the Ol Kalou by-election who breached the code of conduct.

 “We took them through the process; we fined and warned them and did what the Code of Conduct Enforcement Committee is expected to do by law. Some went to court to challenge the decision of the Electoral Code of Conduct Committee; our process ends there because we have to wait for the verdict of the court. It would be wrong to accuse the IEBC of doing nothing,” she said.