Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ezra Chiloba. [Photo|@ntvkenya]
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ezra Simiyu Chiloba, has reiterated that the August 8 polls were conducted in a free, fair and credible manner.Chiloba who carried the day on social media sites during the entire election period after the August 8 voting day, spoke of his first time experience to conduct general election, few days after the exercise.He revealed that he had lost many friends, following the disputed presidential election, that saw IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati, declare incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta, president elect, Friday August 11.
The Opposition, NASA disputed the results, saying IEBC systems were hacked in favour of Uhuru.According to him, a lot of propaganda from various parties accompanied the declaration of the results, tainting his image, but he had no option but to stick to the electoral rules and laws.“I can tell you that maybe because of my upbringing, sticking to the rules is very important for me, so are my personal values. I am 200 per cent confident that we did the right thing. The outcome of the election and the propaganda that accompanied it saw me lose many friends," Chiloba told Business Daily.“I set out to run a very good election, technically effective, efficient, and credible and I am confident that, that is what happened,” he added.Chiloba who came to be the most searched person on the website, on the day of declaration, revealed that people were now looking at him differently, but 'he does not care'."I am not certain whether I will preside over the 2022 general elections. My ambition after I left the United Nations (UN) was to join the private sector. I wanted to be a CEO in some private sector at the age of 39. Now I’m 39," he said.