Wiper Party has assured its supporters that Kalonzo Musyoka is still in the President Uhuru Kenyatta succession race come August 9, contrary to reports of him being locked out by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) for non-compliance.
Moreover, Wiper party Leaders on Saturday, May 28 dismissed claims that Kalonzo had been barred from vying for the country’s top seat in the forthcoming August 9, polls because of failure to present the IEBC with electronic signatures.
“The National Elections Board (NEB) wishes to confirm that we have complied with this requirement as we have ALREADY SUBMITTED the soft copy of our Candidate’s supporters in Excel format today, 28/5/22 which is well within the deadline set by IEBC of 29/5/22,” Wiper’s statement reads.
In addition, IEBC on Saturday, May 28 released a list of 16 shortlisted presidential candidates qualified for the next phase of nominations that kicks off on Sunday, May 29.
However, Kalonzo’s name was still missing from the list of aspirants even after submitting his documents to the electoral body, accompanied by signatures of registered voters. In response to this, the Wiper NEB Chair Agatha Solitei, dismissed claims of Kalonzo Musyoka being locked out of the race as a misrepresentation of facts.
“It is important for the public to know of the misrepresentation of facts by the media that His Excellency Hon Steven Kalonzo Musyoka was not cleared or has been blocked by the IEBC to vie for the position of President of the Republic of Kenya,” she added.
The statement further reads; “His Excellency’s documents were presented to IEBC for 33 counties (against the required 24 Counties) on 25/5/22 on hard and soft copy as specified by the IEBC in their letter of 19/5/22. IEBC upon receiving these documents on the 25th of May,2022 requested us to convert the electronic data which we had submitted to an Excel format on or before the 29th of May 2022. This requirement was further clarified by IEBC via their letter dated 28th May 2022 which clearly stated that the electronic signatures for the WDM Presidential candidate should be submitted by 9.00 am on 29th May 2022.”`