Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) CEO Marjan Hussein Marjan has revealed that the agency lost equipment months to the August 2022 general elections.
Appearing before the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee, Marjan said the commission lost 952 electronic voter identification laptops and 125 biometric voter registration (BVR) devices.
He told the MP John Mbadi-led committee that the equipment was stolen from the IEBC warehouse in Kisumu County.
The chief executive officer told the MPs that unknown people broke into the commission’s warehouse in November 2020 and took the laptops.
Read: Tribunal Recommends Ouster of Suspended IEBC Commissioner Irene Masit
“There is a likelihood of existing cartels within the commission’s ICT offices and supply chain management offices colluding and stealing ICT-related items for their benefit. There is a consistent trend in previous cases reported from the regional and county offices,” he said.
Of of 11,075 BVR kits, 125 were reported stolen nationwide before the elections, he said. He noted that the commission informed the Directorate of Criminal Investigations about the theft.
Additionally, he informed the MPs that the commission was collaborating with the DCI to expedite the process of looking into a former supply chain management assistant in Kisumu who was fired for not responding to a show-cause letter.
“There is need for the commission to audit and inspect all IEBC warehouses starting from the national, regional and county warehouses to ascertain the commission’s information, communication technology-related assets,” said Marjan.
Read Also: Ruto Tears into Raila Over Alleged Visit by Ex-IEBC Officials
The affected areas were perceived to be Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance party leader Raila Odinga’s strongholds.
They include Emuhaya where four Dell laptops and two power cables were stolen, Muhoroni where eight items were stolen including one Dell laptop, heavy duty military grade suitcase, two fingerprint scanners, three flash disks, a backpack, laptop charger, two Logitech cameras and USB hub.
Other constituencies are Nyando where two laptops got lost, Marakwet West where 26 electronic voter identification devices were stolen, Karachuonyo where 31 BVR laptops and 45 chargers were stolen, Kajiado North where two laptops and 45 chargers were stolen and Kisumu county warehouse where 952 electronic voter identification devices were stolen.
The other affected areas include Tharaka Nithi constituency where 21 laptops and four generators were stolen and Nandi county Warehouse Kapsabet where 41 laptops, 10 fingerprint scanners, seven cameras, 104 rechargeable batteries, three generators and 23 full BVR kits vanished.
Mr Mbadi questioned whether the thefts were part of a plot to rig the polls.
1 thought on “IEBC CEO Marjan Reveals Commission Lost 952 Laptops Before Polls”