High Court has ordered Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to publish the voter register for inspection by the public and directed they publish a confirmation in the media within 48 hours that it is open.
While delivering the ruling, Justice George Odunga said that the law stipulates that the IEBC should within 90 days from the date of notice for a general election, open the register of voters for inspection for a period of at least 30 days or when the commission deems necessary.
The electoral body who had told the court that they had already made public the register of voters for inspection purposes, had been asked to simply publish a confirmation that it had been done, the manner in which it was carried out and the period that was to take place.
Justice Odunga pointed out that there was no evidence that had been presented before court to show that the register of voters had been made public.
The petition was filed by Africa Centre for Open Governance (Africog) Director Gladwell Otieno against the IEBC seeking to have the commission compelled to publish the register of voters before the 8th August General elections.
Ms Otieno had accused the IEBC of refusing to make public the register of voters hence terming that action as one intended to considerably lock out public views and comments on it in the inspection exercise.
She argued that there are notable inconsistencies in numbers declared by the IEBC as the actual ones for registered voters in certain regions and an inspection of the register will enable a scrutiny of the same so as to ascertain the actual figure in those areas.
