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Kenya: Law Lecturer Roots for ID Alternate to Boost Voter Registration

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4 years ago

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Nairobi — Law lecturer Florence Jaoko, one of the candidates eyeing a commissioner slot at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commissioner (IEBC) has proposed the use of an alternative identification documents for voter registration to reach more eligible electors.

She made the remarks while facing the seven-member panel conducting interviews in search for four IEBC commissioners whose seats fell vacant after successive resignations post-2017 General Election.

While appearing before the seven-member panel, the law lecturer listed the National Identification Card requirement as a major factor inducing voter suppression which has been a major problem in the country’s election system.

“The requirement that you can only register with the National Identification Card is a major problem because some of those young people have a birth certificate or another alternative that could be used, the country needs to allow usage of alternative documentation,” she asserted.

In addition, she noted that voter suppression in the country is also as a result of violence and intimidation as well as insecurity threats.

To address the insecurity of IEBC staff and Kenyans during the elections, Jaoko noted that there is a need for better collaboration between the police sector and the electoral commission.

“IEBC needs to have serious discussions with police service to pre-empt any possible security lapses, they need to always have scenario building processes where they can predict where its insecurity likely to happen and put in place proper mechanisms,” she added while noting the need to educate the public on peaceful elections.