Roselyn Akombe Vows to Expose Secret Details About Kenya’s 2017 Presidential Election

Roselyn Akombe has pledged to reveal full details of what forced her to flee the country and resign from the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) ahead of the 2017 repeat presidential election.

Responding to a Kenyan Twitter user who blamed her for the sham presidential election that was annulled by Kenya’s Supreme Court over irregularities and illegalities, Akombe said she did not have a chance to deliver a credible election.

The Twitter user named Yano wrote: “You [Akombe] had the chance to deliver us to Canaan but you chose to tell former [IEBC] CEO Ezra Chiloba how handsome he was instead of delivering credible elections.”

But in reply, Akombe noted: “No, I did not have a chance. I will release my story in detail one day when I am legally unbound, and you will understand what I mean.”

She added: “As long as we pretend that we have independent institutions, we will continue the charade.”

Akombe fled to the United States a week to the repeat presidential election, where she announced her resignation citing fears for her life among other reasons. She also said she felt the commission could not deliver a free, fair, and credible election as its members were partisan.

“It has become increasingly difficult to continue attending plenary meetings where commissioners come ready to vote along partisan lines and not to discuss the merit of issues before them,” she said in an interview with BBC.

She added: “It has become increasingly difficult to appear on television to defend positions I disagree with in the name of collective responsibility. I do not want to be a party to such a mockery to electoral integrity.”

Following her resignation from IEBC, Akombe resumed her job at the United Nations headquarters in New York, where she is attached to the Political Affairs Department.