President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday evening signed into law the Elections Laws (Amendment) Bill 2016 which allows a back-up mechanism to the electronic voting method during the General Election.
These amendments mean that the IEBC can now put in place “a complimentary mechanism for identification of voters and transmission of elections results “ if the electronic voting fails.
That complimentary mechanism, says the amended Bill assented to by the President at State House, Nairobi, must be “ simple, accurate, verifiable, secure, accountable and transparent to ensure that the commission complies with the provisions of Article 38 of the constitution”.
National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi, Solicitor General Njee Muturi, Majority leaders Aden Duale (Parliament), Kipchumba Murkomen (Senate) and Clerk of the National Assembly Justin Bundi were present.
The amendments generated some of the most heated debates both in Parliament and the Senate when they were recently presented in both houses for debate.
In the National Assembly, the Jubilee majority voted for the amendments while in the Senate a largely bi-partisan vote passed the amendments.
Besides the complimentary voting mechanism, there are new insertions in the amended Bill including the requirement for MPs and ward representatives to have a degree from a recognised university from before they can seek being elected into office.
The IEBC is also mandated to issue respective political parties with certificates of compliance upon receipt of the nomination rules from the said political parties.
--PSCU