IEBC Clears Mariga for Kibra Seat

 

Image result for Mcdonald Mariga in Court
Football star McDonald Mariga addresses the Press at a past Function. PHOTO: Courtesy

Former footballer McDonald Mariga has survived an onslaught against his candidature after the IEBC cleared him to vie for the Kibra MP seat.

Making the announcement, the electoral body revealed that upon thorough checking of the details of his voter registration slip, Mariga’s details on the Biometric Voter registration Kits matched.

The football star had been struck off from the list of those eligible to participate in the Kibra by-election after it emerged that his name was not in the voters’ register.

In the by-election, IEBC stated that at least 30 people had submitted their candidature for the vacant seat but only 23 had been cleared.

The seven others were struck off after they failed to meet the legal threshold for vying for the legislative seat or some of them did not present themselves for clearance.

The National Assembly and Presidential Elections Act Chapter 7 states that registration of electors and revision of the register of electors may be carried out at all times except in the case of any by-election, between the date of the declaration of the vacancy of the seat concerned and the date of such by-election.

Chebukati stated that this law only applies to the registration of candidates and not voters. Mariga, who registered at Kariorkor Social Hall, would have been barred were he to register in Kibra constituency.

Whereas National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi announced the vacancy of the seat on August 14, Mariga registered as a voter on August 26, a dozen days after the seat had been declared vacant.

Mariga’s legal team, led by Elisha Ongoya, called on the Wafula Chubakati-led electoral dispute committee to remedy the error in the football star’s registration to allow him to contest.

 

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