IEBC ratifies petition
to disband Makueni Govt.
By Martin Masai
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has verified over 40,000 signatures petitioning the dissolution of the County Government of Makueni.
In a statement, IEBC Communications Director Tabitha Mutemi said the petitioners had surpassed the constitutional threshold of 10 percent of registered voters by a three percent rate, meaning that residents of Makueni are overzealous to send their government packing.
The petition arises from a stalemate between the County Assembly and the Executive arm of the government led by Governor Kivutha Kibwana that has made government impossible.
The county assembly has refused to pass legislation to legitimise government spending, with Kibwana refusing to sign any passed government spending that does not correspond to his proposals.
The bone of contention is a demand for higher budget for the assembly, which is far beyond the ceiling set by the Central Government. Kibwana supports the central government ceiling saying that the assembly does not need huge budgets as it has no role in development programs.
The move by IEBC sets the stage for President Uhuru Kenyatta to appoint a team to probe the petition ahead of the appointment of a commission to run the government as an election is awaited.
The IEBC statement said "Pursuant
to section 123(2) of the County Government Act (A petition under subsection (1)
shall be supported by the signatures of not less than ten percent of the
registered Voters in the County).
The Independent Electoral
and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has verified the list of registered voters and
the results are summarized as follows:
1.
Total
Registered Voters in Makueni County - 298,474
2.
Total Number of actual signatures verified - 51,005
3.
Total number of signature Confirmed as Registered Voters in the County - 41,123
4.
The number of signatures rejected - 9,882
5.
Percentage of the confirmed registered Voters - 13.78%
From the above data, the petitioners have fulfilled the
legal threshold of ten percent of the registered voters in the county".
