According to Nairobi Police boss Japheth Koome, the officers are under strict instructions not to allow any protester near there/MIKE KARIUKI
NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 26 – More police officers have been deployed to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) offices amid fears of another planned protest by Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) leaders.
According to Nairobi Police boss Japheth Koome, the officers are under strict instructions not to allow any protester near there.
“We will not allow anybody to disrupt the activities of Kenyans who are going about their business in town. That is not acceptable and we shall not sit idle while that happens,” he stated.
His statement followed Monday’s incident in which CORD leaders led by Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Senators Moses Wetangula and Boni Khalwale were accompanied by hundreds of supporters, who were chanting anti-IEBC slogans.
Chaos started when the leaders and supporters broke the police cordon and attempted to forcibly enter the building, prompting officers to use teargas.
The protests are aimed at forcing the commission out of office ahead of the 2017 elections.
The commission has however refused to leave office and instead asked the politicians to use legal means to remove them.
ODM party members in Kisumu in the meantime planned a demonstration Tuesday to the local IEBC offices after the one planned in Nairobi failed.
Kisumu Central Constituency ODM Chairman Seth Kanga appealed to CORD supporters in the lakeside city to join the demonstration.
Kanga said they will be in solidarity with their party leader Raila Odinga after his attempts to storm IEBC headquarters in Nairobi failed.
He says IEBC Commissioners must be forced out of office and a new team put in place to be able to conduct a free and fair election in 2017.
His sentiments came after a Siaya MCA chained himself to the gates of the IEBC office in Kisumu.
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