13,000 IDs Uncollected In Kisii County Despite Voter Registration Drive

KISII,Kenya, Jan, 27 – The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is undertaking the second phase of the mass voter registration as the country gears towards the August 9th polls.

Despite a campaign encouraging Kenyans to get registered, the process has witnessed low turnout.

In Kisii county for instance, at least 13,000 identity cards lie uncollected at the Registrar of Persons offices.

Speaking at the IEBC county office, IEBC Commissioner Justus Nyang’aya called on residents to collect the crucial document and get registered.

Kisii county is targeting to register 110,000 new voters.

“Having to register to vote, the only primary document is an ID. And if we have 13,000 identity cards that have not been collected, that is setting us back,” said Nyang’aya.

Plans are already underway between the electoral body and the Registrar of Persons office to ensure the cards are processed within the next 3 days ready for collection.

Further, another 10,000 IDs for the count are yet to be processed despite residents applying for them back in October,2021.

“Young people have a big role to play in electoral governance in this country and if they don’t do that, others will do it for them. And those that will do it for them, might elect the type of leadership that they don’t want. This is their civil duty and they must do it,” he said

The second phase of the mass voter registrations ends on February 6,2022.

According to IEBC , the larger Nyanza Region is said to have recorded a low turnout compared to regions such as the Rift Valley.