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Mass transfer of voters from Coast to North Eastern abnormal – Somali Mombasa Chapter


Friday February 10, 2017

An IEBC official takes a voter's finger print details during a voter registration exercise at Pumwani social hall as mass voter registration kicked off countrywide. /FILE
An IEBC official takes a voter's finger print details during a voter registration exercise at Pumwani social hall as mass voter registration kicked off countrywide. /FILE

Thousands of the Somalis in Mombasa are being transferred against their wish to North Eastern region to register as voters, the Somali Mombasa Chapter has said.

Chairman Abdulrahman Yusuf said on Thursday that "big cash" is being poured for the exercise.

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“Buses are being used to ferry them. The same mode of transportation is anticipated to be used during the elections week in August. It is unacceptable,” he said.

In January 20, IEBC official expressed concern over the “abnormal” rate at which Coast residents are seeking transfers from voting centres.

Though he did not give figures, IEBC regional coordinator Albert Gogo said the number of transfer applications is almost the same as during the first phase of mass voter listing between February and March 2016, when 1.4 million new voters were listed.

During the first phase of listing, the IEBC received 700,000 transfer requests.
Yusuf said the motive of those behind the mass voter transfer is to influence the results of a certain constituency in the region.

Yusuf said a reduction in number of the community will hurt their chances of clinching the Changamwe MP seat where the community has majority votes.

Last general election, incumbent Omar Mwinyi won the seat with 15,923 votes.

Yusuf said they will convince Changamwe Jubilee aspirant Abdi Daib, who have clout with most of voters, to decamp to ODM.

“Daib is a good leader but the party is not sellable in this county. We are urging him to join us in ODM and he will be guarantee free and fail primaries,” he said.

The voters are suspected to be transferred to Garissa Town constituency. Majority leader Aden Duale is the area MP and while Wiper’s Farah Maalim wants to wrest the seat from him.

 

 





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