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Confusion, Violence As Ford-P holds its primaries

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Published on Saturday, 02 June 2007 06:08

Ford People nominations in parts of Nyanza province were a sham. Lack of election materials, few presiding officials and disagreements on formalities and protocol marred the exercise.

Tensions ran high at most polling stations when, after waiting for officials for several hours, the voters left without voting. As candidates boycotted the poll and walked away with their supporters, others went ahead to conduct the same in the absence of their opponents' agents and were later declared winners. This attracted quite an outcry.

The losers yesterday besieged the regional co-ordinator, Mr George Mwicigi, at a Kisii hotel disputing the results while demanding a repeat. At some stations, a handful of ballot papers were made available, much less than the number of those at the polling centres.

Mr Mwicigi, admitted that the elections had failed in most constituencies saying a repeat will be conducted today, but he declined to disclose the areas. "We underestimated the turnout which surprised many but we have ordered for more election materials for the repeat exercise," he said. Chaotic scenes were prevalent in almost all constituencies, which left scores of people injured. Vehicles of many aspirants were smashed in Bobasi, Bomachoge and Nyaribari Masaba.

In Bobasi, a candidate Joshua Ongoro was beaten up at Nyakegogi polling station and his agents chased away. Mr Ongoro, who is based in the US, said the nomination was a sham and called for a repeat. The lack of election materials in several polling centres caused a major delay in the voting exercise while in some constituencies, candidates who managed to acquire ballot papers conducted elections within their own strongholds and declared themselves winners.

In Bobasi, former MP Stephen Manoti was declared a winner after he garnered 12,659 votes followed by Mr Bosire Ogega, who got 8 000 with the US-based Joshua Ongoro getting 1,300. The results announced at Ogembo by the Ford People national officials were however strongly disputed by the losers who sought an immediate repeat.

In Kitutu Chache Mr Jimmy Angwenyi got 37,052, Richard Ogamba, 854 while Andrew Angwenyi Gichana got 563. In South Mugirango the exercise failed to take off in most stations due to lack of election materials. It was the same case in Bonchari,Kitutu Masaba and Bomachoge.

In Kitutu Masaba, a supporter of a parliamentary candidate, Mr Timothy Bosire, was stabbed on the head as he displayed a poster of his preferred candidate. The victim, Mr Lawrence Nyachiega, was admitted at Kisii district hospitals in a critical condition. Speaking from his hospital bed, Nyachienga said he was attacked at Kiomakondo polling station.