By The Plu Correspondent
The chairman of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Issack Hassan said on Thursday that his team will not resign despite ensuing pressure from the opposition and its followers.
The deviant chairman harshly told off the opposition to seek legal avenues through the popular constitutional mechanism than what he termed as intimidation and character assassination.
“The public offices we hold are creatures of that Constitution and by it we shall be guided. Holding public office is no excuse to be defamed and abused. We should not be punching bags or objects of hatred because of the decisions we make in exercising our functions,” said Issack Hassan in a press statement.
The chairman’s statement comes hot in the heels of heated standoff where both the ruling Jubilee and opposition Cord coalitions disagree on whether or not the IEBC should be disbanded.
IEBC now says it is not going anywhere away from its Anniversary Towers in a renewed promise to deliver a flawless, free and credible election come 2017. Cord has vowed not to take part in an election planned by the current IEBC commissioners.
““For the avoidance of doubt, the commissioners are not resigning. We will be setting a dangerous precedent if every time we disagree with a decision we seek the removal from office of those we do not agree with,” IEBC Chairman said “What we are seeing now is the culmination of a three year smear campaign by Cord; most of what you hear about IEBC is not from us,” he said.
President Uhuru Kenyaytta condemned protests by Cord that saw leaders including Raila and Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang’ula teargassed.
He said the constitution and the law must be respected in the bid to remove the commissioners and amend Kenya’s electoral system.
The international community has also thrown itself into the ring. Eleven western diplomats said Kenyans must dialogue and build confidence in the IEBC ahead of the election.
The envoys, led by US Ambassador Robert Godec, said dialogue between leaders and citizens is the only way to ensure a free, credible, peaceful poll next August.
