President William Ruto has issued a fresh gazette notice appointing Erastus Edung Ethekon as Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), along with six commissioners, after the High Court nullified an earlier appointment made on June 10.
The latest appointments come after the court upheld the nomination process but declared the initial gazettement unlawful, ruling that it was done in violation of existing court orders.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by Article 250 (2) as read with section 5(2) of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Act and Paragraph 4 of the First Schedule to the Act, I, William Samoei Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces, appoint Erastus Edung Ethekon to be the Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission for a period of six (6) years,” the head of state stated in the notice released on Thursday evening.
The judges directed the Head of State to regularize the process through a fresh gazette notice before the nominees could take the oath of office.
In the new gazette notice dated July 10, the President has appointed Ann Njeri Nderitu, Moses Alutalala Mukhwana, Mary Karen Sorobit, Hassan Noor Hassan, Francis Odhiambo Aduol, and Fahima Araphat Abdallah to serve as commissioners.
According to the gazette notice, both the Chairperson and the commissioners will serve a single term of six years.
The appointments now clear the way for the commissioners to take the oath of office and begin preparations to steer the country through the 2027 General Election.
