Kenyan electoral official retires days after stinging criticism by Supreme Court

A Senior Kenyan electoral official has resigned days to Kenya’s repeat presidential elections scheduled for October 26.

Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Director of Legal and Corporate Affairs, Praxedes Tororey, resigned early this morning.

Tororey resigned just two days after the Supreme Court gave out a stinging criticism which indicted the electoral body for bungling the August 8 General Election.

On 1st September the Supreme Court nullified the presidential election after IEBC failed to adhere to the electoral laws as stipulated in the constitution while transmitting the results.

During its full reading of the Judgment on September 20th, Supreme Court judges led by Chief Justice Maraga berated the electoral body officials.

“In an election as important as that of the president, is quality not as important as quantity? “We were left wondering whether the critical documents be considered genuine with no security features”?Maraga said in his reading.

"Why would a presiding officer fail to append a signature to a document that he/she was key in preparing”? He further asked in his ruling.

“Whether be it about numbers, or laws, at the end of the day, elections must reflect the true will of the people”

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Deputy Chief Justice Judge Philomena Mwilu also criticised the election board for refusing to comply with court orders to open its computer servers.

“Noncompliance or failure by the board to do as ordered must be held against it.” Justice Mwilu also revealed the absence of all tally forms by the IEBC was improper.

Ms. Tororey has, however, said she retired after attaining the retirement age of 60 and not because of the Supreme Court ruling.

Despite the stinging criticism of IEBC the Supreme court did not find any of the electoral official culpable of electoral offenses.

Tororey was among senior officials adversely linked by the National Super Alliance (NASA) as being one of the officials responsible for bungling the elections and has been pushing to be removed.