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Starehe IEBC official confirms Mariga is a registered voter

IEBC commissioner Abdi Guliye verifies the BVR machine with Mariga’s details at the commission's offices on September 13, 2019.
A senior IEBC official on Friday confirmed that the Jubilee candidate for the Kibra by-election McDonald is a registered voter.
The revelation came during a Dispute Resolution Committee chaired by IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati after an appeal lodged by Mariga.
The Former Harambee Stars international suffered a huge blow earlier this week when the IEBC denied him the nod to vie for the Kibra parliamentary seat slated November 7.
In the meeting, also attended by commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu, Deputy Starehe Registration officer Ismael Yassin confirmed that Mariga is indeed a registered voter.
Yassin presented before the Tribunal the BVR machine with Mariga’s name indicating he was duly registered.
"On August 26 he came slightly before mid-day the actual registration happens at 5 pm. He presented himself before me, initially he came without his ID but sent for it, I issued with Form A, took his biometrics, then after that I wrote the acknowledgement slip," Yassin said.
IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati with commissioner Abdi Guliye verify the BVR machine with Mariga’s name at the IEBC headquarters on September 13, 2019.
IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati with commissioner Abdi Guliye verify the BVR machine with Mariga’s name at the IEBC headquarters on September 13, 2019.
Image: DOUGLAS OKIDDY
Chebukati said that Form A had no Mariga's signature.
"You have witnessed in Form A but there is no signature of the applicant. Whose mistake is it?" the IEBC chair posed.
The Starehe IEBC official was however at pains to explain how the anomaly occurred.
"That was an oversight, the time we realised that the client had gone," Yassin said.
Mariga through his lawyer Elisha Ogoya challenged the decision by Kibra returning officer Beatrice Muli that he is not a registered voter and thus not eligible to contest.
"As a matter of fact, the complainant is a holder of acknowledgement slip issued by IEBC, he was a holder of that slip as at the time he represented his nomination papers to the respondent. The validity of the slip has not been questioned at all," argued Ogoya.
McDonald Mariga legal team lead by Elisha Ongoya who is the lead counsel and Moses Chelanga during tribunal hearing of his case at IEBC headquarters,Nairobi on September 13, 2019.
McDonald Mariga legal team lead by Elisha Ongoya who is the lead counsel and Moses Chelanga during tribunal hearing of his case at IEBC headquarters,Nairobi on September 13, 2019.
Image: DOUGLAS OKIDDY
Muli had insisted that the electoral body was transparent in their work citing that Mariga's documents were received by IEBC on Tuesday and handled through the same process as other candidates.
"We received Mariga document on September 10 and Mariga went through the nomination process the same way other candidates did. We have a checklist which we use to clear candidates," she said.
  Muli said the pertinent documents were first submitted to verification desk and forwarded to her.
She said IEBC nomination checklist requires aspirant be a registered voter.
 Muli said that the only way the returning officer can verify if the aspirant is a registered voter is checking the register in the KIEMS.
The IEBC will give it's verdict on Mariga's petition on Monday next week.

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