By Judith Gicobi
According to a study made public by Haki Africa on Monday, June 28, only George Wajackoyah’s campaign for the Roots Party had not engaged in voter bribery at the level of the presidential vote.
Executive Director Hussein Khalid mentioned during a news conference in Nairobi that a grassroots assessment had shown that Wajackoyah had not provided any incentives to the young during their campaign.
Khalid added that Haki had evidence of instances in which every other campaign, including Azimio and Kenya Kwanza, had committed electoral fraud.
The civil society group also stated that the documentation had been sent to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and other organizations so they could take the proper legal action against the responsible parties.
“Voter bribery from what we have witnessed is all round, maybe only Wajackoyah, whom we have not heard anything about. Even for independent candidates, we have documented incidences of voter bribery.
“We have documentation for both Azimio and Kenya Kwanza, and we shall share the information with relevant authorities to appropriate actions,” he reiterated.
Anthony Mahui, IEBC Nairobi County’s Deputy Returning Officer, commented on the situation and said that underlying problems including unemployment drove young people to accept bribes.
“Underlying issues such as youth unemployment and poverty manifest in them taking the bribes, and they should be addressed deeply from the root cause. Even with our officers, sometimes we see open bribery every other day,” Mahui explained.
If elected president, Wajackoyah, who takes pleasure in being “clean,” vowed to combat corruption with a hard hand. The leader of the Roots Party suggested that everyone found guilty of the vice receive the death penalty.
