The newly appointed Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) team, barely days into office, is facing a baptism of fire following a damning audit report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, revealing deep-rooted mismanagement, systemic weaknesses, and legal breaches at the electoral body.
The 2023/2024 audit report paints a troubling picture of an institution grappling with operational paralysis, gaps in accountability, and a backlog of unresolved issues, many of which are likely to compromise public confidence in future electoral processes.
The report begins by questioning the prolonged vacancy in the IEBC’s top leadership, noting that the absence of commissioners crippled decision-making and delayed crucial operational approvals. While a new team led by Chairperson Erastus Ethekon Edung has now been sworn in, alongside commissioners Ann Njeri Nderitu, Moses Mukhwana, Mary Karen Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan, Francis Aduol, and Fahima Araphat Abdallah, the magnitude of inherited issues may overshadow their reform agenda.
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Among the glaring red flags is the lack of segregation of duties at the commission’s county offices, raising concerns over internal checks and balances.
One of the most troubling revelations involves the integrity of IEBC’s election technology. The audit disclosed that out of 59,100 Kenya Integrated Election Management System (KIEMS) kits, a staggering 3,433 were defective. Additionally, 200 kits were never returned after the 2017 and 2022 General Elections, with two declared lost and 30 reported as burnt in Wajir County. A further 159 kits used in by-elections and court-ordered petitions remain unaccounted for.
More alarmingly, a 2024 physical verification revealed that 79 kits lacked hard drives, while 215 were empty, casting serious doubts over inventory controls and the commission’s preparedness to manage future electoral logistics.
The audit further accuses IEBC of breaching public procurement regulations after it emerged that goods and services worth KSh136 million were acquired outside the mandatory e-procurement platform. Manual procurement records were sent to the head office for processing, flouting Regulation 54 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Regulations, 2020.
Although the Commission claimed a phased IFMIS rollout in collaboration with the National Treasury was underway, field visits revealed that no meaningful implementation had occurred in pilot counties, including Nairobi, Kiambu, and Machakos.
The Auditor General also flagged the failure by the National Treasury to operationalise the Commission Fund, a legal requirement under Section 18(1) of the IEBC Act, 2011. Instead, IEBC continues to receive funds through Exchequer issues, a method deemed both outdated and non-compliant with the law.
“In the circumstances, the National Treasury and the Commission were in breach of the law,” the audit report noted. Equally disturbing are findings concerning the commission’s fixed assets. Of the 272 vehicles on IEBC’s fleet, only 207 had verifiable logbooks, and 186 were still registered under the defunct Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK). Furthermore, IEBC was unable to provide ownership documents for 25 parcels of land allocated by the national and county governments.
The commission also lacks a comprehensive assets register, a contravention of Regulation 143(2) of the Public Finance Management (National Government) Regulations, 2015.
Inspections of IEBC warehouses in 13 counties, including Kisumu, Machakos, and Bungoma, revealed gas cylinders being stored alongside sensitive election materials, a grave fire risk. Meanwhile, a field visit to the Karachuonyo constituency office uncovered missing equipment, including 31 BVR laptops and 45 chargers.
At the Kisii County offices, auditors discovered unexplained discrepancies in BVR kit records; 26 kits could not be accounted for. Some kits had missing or damaged components, undermining the commission’s internal controls.
While Chairperson Ethekon has vowed to undertake a comprehensive review of the entire electoral process, from data verification and transmission to training and public engagement, the Auditor General’s findings present a steep uphill task for the new team.
“With the 2027 General Election in sight, our focus must be on every step that leads us there,” Ethekon said. “Elections are not an end, they are the means through which democracy lives and breathes.”
But unless sweeping reforms are undertaken immediately, and accountability enforced across all levels of the commission, the IEBC risks heading into the next electoral cycle riddled with the same structural flaws and public distrust it has long struggled to shake off.
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